Dichotomy
by aomelovespuppy
Summary: Like yin and yang, they are so diferent, but also complement each other. They branch out, only to meet again and grow roots. This is my take on Inukag during the 3 year separation and how they finally become husband and wife.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just use them because she said that whatever happens next, she leaves it to the fan´s imagination

Prologue

Kagome let out a throaty whisper. Her small hands caressing the long silver tresses all the way up to the soft furry ears that surrendered under her delicate touch. Their mouths never disconnecting, except to grasp for air, their bodies moving in sync to the ancient rhythm of their passion.

"I love you." He whispered in her ear. And the emotion that those words evoked made her heart dance inside her chest. Unable to cope with the feelings drawn by his caresses and the words he tenderly spoke; Kagome broke up in tears.

"Shhh, don´t cry." He spoke softly and kissed away the tears. "It´s ok, I´ve got you. You don´t have to be sad ever again, I´ll never let go of you."

"Inuyasha" She moaned. "Please don´t leave." Her deep brown eyes, eyelashes brimmed with tears stared into his golden ones.

Suddenly she opened her eyes, trying hard to find him, only to find herself staring into the black silence of her room. Sitting up straight and searching frantically in the darkness that surrounded her, desperately adjusting her eyesight to try and see some trace of him.

But he wasn´t there. It hadn´t been real. She was all alone again, as she has been since the day the well closed. Her heart was playing tricks on her, summoning him in the nights when she was defenseless against the longing and aching that has become her life.

During the day, she could busy herself with as many activities as she could possible imagine. She studied harder than ever, getting exceptional grades and attending all the classes. Her school mates had been really surprised to see that she was so doing so well during the last couple of years, so accustomed to her fragile health and constant absences.

She also attended all the extracurricular activities she was presented with, taking cooking lessons, acting in the drama club, singing in the choir. She had even joined the Archery club in an attempt to improve her skills. Anything was preferable to staying idle at home. She also volunteered in an animal shelter during the afternoons and weekends; taking care of dogs and other pets made her feel useful. And when she was not busy with all of these activities she was helping her mother around the house, or her jii-chan in the shrine, or even helping her otouto with the homework.

But the night time was different.

In the nights, her treacherous heart belonged to him and him alone. She would tire herself with as many chores as possible, but still, in her dreams, he would come to her, tormenting her with sweet words that she knew were not his. It was her subconscious mind making it all up to soothe the pain in her heart and she knew it. He would never say _**that**_ to her, he would never speak softly in her ear. It wasn´t like him. It was impossible. She would close her eyes and picture him proudly lifting his chin and letting out a simple "Keh"; that was more like him.

Yet, every night for almost three years, she would wake up after dreaming of them making love tenderly, passionately. Her body would be restless and her mind uneasy. The fire in her groins leaving her exhausted and frustrated. Every day the feeling of disgruntlement continued to grow inside of her. How could she ever be happy again?

She couldn´t take any more of these, there must be a way to go on with her life. Enough of the self-pity, she wasn't doing herself any favors, or the people close to her. Her mood was always downcast and the prospect of dragging on like this was not what she has envisioned for her life.

"I´ll accept his invitation, I have to take command of my life."

Her friends Yuka, Ayumi and Eri have been insisting forever. And Hojo-kun never gave up. He was always giving her small presents, helping her study and of course asking her out. And she always turned him down politely, because in her heart there was no room for Hojo, or anybody else. Inuyasha filled it completely. He left no space to share. And it was devastating, the feeling of belonging to him was overwhelming, she was powerless against it. However, she had never even tried to fight it. It was a fact and she had long since surrendered to it. Not even when Kykyou was in the way, no matter all logic and common sense telling her that her feelings were not returned; nothing had stopped her heart from loving him.

Now they were worlds apart, she couldn´t even see him, talk to him. She had to stop this cycle of unrequited love before it ended her.

With her mind made up, Kagome put her head back on the pillows, trying to go back to sleep

"I will get over you Inuyasha" She mumbled closing her eyes before drifting away into a dreamless slumber.

Meanwhile, five hundred years in the past, a crimson and silver figure woke up startled in the branches of the Goshinboku. Unsettling thoughts had come to his mind during his sleep. His voice barely audibles in the quiet of the forest.

"Please don´t forget me, come back to me Kagome."

AN: Well, who would have guessed people would actually read this stuff? I was so excited about publishing I completely forgot a couple of important things, like the disclaimer, or a note to the readers, so here I am. It´s the first time I ever share what I write, so feel free to tell me if there are any mistakes I may have overlooked. English is my second language, I´m sure you have plenty of mistakes or awkward translations. I have this story almost finished, I´m hoping to update twice a week, if posible. Thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 1 The other side

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just use them because she said that whatever happens next, she leaves it to the fan´s imagination

1 The other side

 _"_ Inuyasha, are you around here?"

Miroku´s voice could be clearly heard for miles, still, there was no answer. He and Shippou had been calling out his name for several minutes. The monk was about to turn around and go back to the village upon reaching the bone eater´s well, when he had the crazy idea to look inside. There crouching in the dark bottom of the well he so the figure of his friend.

 _"_ There you are! Why didn´t you answer?" We have been shouting for several minutes.

 _"_ Go away Bouzu. I ain´t in the mood."

 _"_ You are never in the mood lately, what is it this time?"

 _"_ It´s none of your business."

 _"_ He must have dreamt of Kagome again _"_ interjected Shippou, who was perched on the lip of the well.

He hadn´t finished speaking her name when a red flash flew from the insides of the well to knock the small fox down from where he was sitting.

 _"_ Shut up, runt!" Inuyasha said through clenched teeth standing dangerously over the fallen form of the kitsune. "Or you want me to make you?"

Any other person, or yokai, would have felt threatened by the fierce outbreak, but Shippou knew Inuyasha was all bark and no bite. He had tried to make him come out of his shell, he could sense his sadness and loneliness, even when he was surrounded by all his friends. Inuyasha had become a shadow of his once proud self. He seldom smiled, or become angry as of lately. He didn´t even show excitement during the few fights they would face nowadays. It was like the fire in his soul had become only embers, enough to keep him breathing, but not really alive.

 _"_ Come on Inuyasha, Sango is waiting for us to have breakfast. You know how she hates to waste food."

Miroku tried the guilty card, knowing well that his friend would rather not make the monk´s pregnant wife unhappy.

 _"_ I ain´t hungry." Was all he answered while turning his back on them. He didn´t want them to see his face and give away all the conflictive emotions the dream had brought to life.

He had thought he was getting better. At least, he thought, he could disguise his feelings in front of his friends. He dreamt of her often, if not daily. He had dreamt of her face, her smile, her smell. He dreamt of her loving him, holding him, looking at him tenderly, as she had done many times during their journey to defeat Naraku. He also had more intimate dreams of her undulating with pleasure under his body, all rosy and sweaty, panting and gasping after their lovemaking. These he wouldn´t confess to even under torture, he was so embarrassed about them to even give a hint of them to a pervert like Miroku.

And yet, last night´s was different. He saw her crying in his dream. She had called for him with eyes full of tears and a strangled voice.

Those images had cut him like a hot blade. He knew they were worlds apart from each other, he couldn´t go to her and try to soothe her or hold her close to his heart.

 _"_ Do you think she forgot?" He whispered half expecting his friends wouldn´t listen to his mumbling

 _"_ What do you mean? Kagome _-_ sama?" The monk asked.

 _"_ No way. Kagome loves us, she will never forget about us." Shippou shouted angrily.

 _"_ So, that is what put you in such a foul mood this morning!" Miroku gave him a suspicious glare and continued. "I think she has a very good memory and it is not likely she would ever forget what she has lived with us."

 _"_ I don´t mean it like that _"_ Inuyasha said in exasperation. "I mean; do you think she has a different life now? It´s been almost three years. Maybe she found somebody and is happy in her time."

Miroku looked at him with a gleam of understanding in his eyes.

During these last three years, he had been blessed with joy and happiness while his friend had been struggling to hide the depression he was immersed into. He had tried to help him, but honestly, what could he ever do to cheer Inuyasha up?

They have been working together exterminating monsters and protecting the village. They had helped each other build their houses, even though Inuyasha still preferred to sleep in the open. Miroku´s and Sango´s home had been built first because they were in a hurry to get married. It was a simple log cabin with plenty of room for their growing family. While Inuyasha had kept on building, expanding the house and adding more details and furniture. He still worked hard on it, keeping a small garden, cleaning it, changing stuff from one place to the other. He was never satisfied with the result. Every village they visited Inuyasha would invest part of his income in a new addition for the house. The cottage now looked like a small palace and yet Inuyasha preferred to sleep in the branches of the Goshinboku.

Shippou would call him a baca, but Miroku and Sango understood. It was Kagome´s house, not his. He was waiting for her to return.

Apparently, he was running out of hope.

Miroku thought for a moment, pondering on the right words to speak.

 _"_ Would you prefer her to be lonely and unhappy?" He finally said.

 _"_ Well, I´ve always been a selfish bastard." Inuyasha said. _"_ But no, I´d like her to be happy. I just have the feeling she is not. It´s weird, but I feel like we are connected somehow.

 _"_ Maybe you should let her go. I have told you before, there are more than a couple of young ladies that would be glad to get in your good graces, if you know what I mean. Besides, you have become some kind of protector to the village, should you choose to take a wife, no parent would openly reject you.

Inuyasha turned around to face his friends again, his face red in embarrassment, or was it rage?

 _"_ Yes, you have said so before, and I have told you I don´t want any other." He almost shouted the last part making Miroku take a backward step.

 _"_ I´m part Inu yokai, you keep forgetting. It means we are loyal. Besides, I don´t want a woman who is afraid of me."

Miroku looked shocked for a second and Inuyasha regretted letting so much information slip his tongue. A few more seconds went by before Miroku dared to speak again.

 _"_ Inuyasha, is that the reason why you could never let go of Kykyou-sama? Your loyal youkai half?"

Inuyasha looked down again, afraid to let his emotions show plain in his face. He hadn´t ever talk about Kikyo with Miroku, at least since after her death. He wasn´t sure how much he could let them know.

 _"_ It was the main reason I couldn´t accept Kagome feelings in the first place. I had a commitment with Kikyo, I owed her my life and I had to fulfill the promise I had made and avenge her death. Only then I would be free to be with Kagome.

" _But it was too late then_ " he thought to himself.

He had taken her love for granted, thinking she would be there for him, as she had promised. He thought that after they defeated Naraku he would gather the nerve to ask Kagome to stay with him in his time forever. Never in his worst nightmares had he imagined that Naraku wasn´t the real enemy, but the jewel itself. He never stopped to think that after the Shikon no Tama was purified and Kagome´s job was finished, there was no reason for her to remain by his side. The kamis or the universe, whoever had the power to decide, had made sure of that. And no matter what spell, enchantment or sacred parchment he had tried during these three years, the well would not open.

 _"_ Then, what do you suppose you should do with your life? _"_ Miroku asked taking him back from his dark thoughts.

 _"_ I don´t know." Inuyasha answered, his head bent to look at the ground. "I suppose 500 years ain´t that much for a half demon _"_ he said with a false sense of cheer in his voice.

 _"_ You are not being serious, are you? His friend asked in concern.

 _"_ Keh!" It was all the answer he gave the monk.

 _"_ I will wait with you Inuyasha." Shippou added. He also missed Kagome a lot. He wasn´t as affected by her absence as Inuyasha, but still, he wanted his surrogate mother back.

"We are powerful beings, 500 years is nothing for us, right?"

 _"_ You´re right for once kit." Inuyasha answered with his face still facing the ground to hide it from his friends.

He started to walk in the direction of the village while Miroku and Shippou followed. No one uttered another word but he could not shake the anguish that crushed his heart, his thoughts somber and dark.

" _I can feel the red string on my little finger is tightly wrapped around Kagome too. She is my destiny and, try as you might, the thread will not brake. No matter how long it takes to reach the other end, I´ll wait."_

If there was nothing else he could do, then he would keep on waiting for her.


	3. Chapter 2 After Graduation

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just use them because she said that whatever happens next, she leaves it to the fan´s imagination. Well, this is just my imagination.

2 After Graduation

Graduation was a happy event in everybody´s life. Naomi Higurashi thought it should be a happy day at last in her daughter´s life. She had been watching her during the last few years and was saddened by her change, Kagome used to be a ray of light in her family´s and friend´s life. No matter what challenge she approached, she always came out triumphant and cheerful. Even when she had been traveling to the Sengoku Jidai, with all the problems she was faced then, she would come back home to recover and leave again with a smile on her face and her chin up, proudly; her mind set on fighting the enemy.

Never had she seen Kagome like this in her young life, and it broke her heart. To watch her daughter wither as a delicate flower in front of her and being unable to do anything.

She knew it had to do with Inuyasha, she had heard her daughter many times whisper his name when she thought no one was listening. Naomi believed she would get over it, a girl´s first crush would last until she met her true love. She hoped and waited, but nothing had changed. Kagome had fulfilled her duties as a daughter, she couldn´t complain about that, but her heart was not into it. She suspected Kagome heart had been stolen by a silver-haired hanyo with no possibilities of getting it back.

But there was one last hope, Hojo.

Kagome had told her they have been dating for the last couple of weeks and Naomi was hoping against hope, he would be able to make her forget.

And today Kagome was graduating High School.

She hasn´t talked about college yet. But it didn´t matter. Maybe she needed a sabbatical to think things through. Whatever she decided, Naomi would support her, the only thing that mattered to her was to see Kagome happy again.

The sound of the doorbell interrupted her train of thought.

"I´m coming! She shouted getting up lazily from her cup of tea when she saw her daughter running down the stairs. Kagome was ready for Prom night, she was wearing a peach colored strapless dress, with an embroidered bodice, a silver lace in her waist and a floor length skirt. She brought silver pumps in her hands, which once she put on made her look slender and tall. Her hair was simply styled with her wavy strands hanging loosely to the right side of her head while a silver ornament kept the hair on her left side. Her makeup and mani-pedi had been done by her friends, Ayumi, Eri and Yuka, hours prior to the ball, in an attempt to cheer her up for the night.

She looked beautiful and fragile, like a porcelain doll, her mother thought.

"It must be Hojo." She said standing in front of her mother nervously. "How do I look?"

"Like a princess" Naomi answered while resisting the urge to hug her should she wrinkle the dress.

She looked in her daughter's eyes hoping to see some semblance of happiness, but all she saw was a flicker of fear. She grabbed Kagome hands to encourage her and she found them cold and shaky.

"Are you filling all right honey?" She asked trying not to show concern in her voice.

"Well, I´m a little nervous. I don´t usually dress up like this, I feel very out of place. Don´t you think it´s too much?" She said freeing her hands and holding the side of the skirt to further display the dress for her mother´s inspection.

Naomi let out a sigh. She couldn´t remember her daughter being so self-conscious about her appearance.

"Don´t worry dear, everybody will try to look their best tonight."

With those words, she hurried to the door, remembering Hojo was still waiting.

She opened the door to find the boy smiling shyly at her.

"Good evening Higurashi-sama." He said with a small reverence, his eyes never leaving the figure of her daughter standing behind her. "Good evening to you too Kagome-chan."

Hojo also looked nervous.

"Maybe that´s a good thing," Naomi thought. She didn´t want her daughter to feel pressured into doing something she wasn´t ready to do.

"Higurashi-sama, I have something for you."

He took his right hand from behind his back and gave a little reverence to present the older woman with a colorful bouquet of tulips.

"Thank you, dear, you didn´t have to. Let me put these on water."

Naomi turned to the kitchen and left them standing in the hall.

"I´m so glad you like it."

He turned to Kagome then, taking the other hand from behind his back. "And this is for you, Kagome-chan."

He took the other hand from behind his back to reveal a corsage made of small white roses.

Kagome felt her cheeks turning a slight shade of pink as she extended her hands to take the offering. She lifted the small arrangement to her nose and inhaled the sweet fragrance of the flowers.

"Inuyasha would be overwhelmed by the smell, he would never give me roses"

The thought managed to sadden her even more if that was possible. She tried to push that idea to the back of her mind. Tonight was a happy occasion.

She looked at Hojo and found him waiting anxiously for her to acknowledge the present.

"Thank you very much Hojo-kun. It´s lovely." She gave him a courteous smile and was relieved to see him relax.

"Let me help you with that." He offered.

Hojo took Kagome´s left hand in his and slid the elastic over her knuckles and up to her wrist.

"It looks perfect on you. He said smiling sheepishly. "Are you ready to leave? I have the limo waiting at the bottom of stairs of the shrine."

Mrs. Higurashi returned from the kitchen with the tulips already in a vase.

"We have to go now, mom," Kagome said as she kissed her mother goodbye and put on her silver shoes. She also took the silver clutch her mother had lent her which she had left on the kitchen table hours earlier.

"Go have fun you two. This is your night, there is no curfew tonight. I know you have worked very hard to get here and I want you to enjoy it."

Kagome took Hojo´s extended arm and was almost out of the door when her mother remembered something.

"Wait! Let me take a picture before you go."

She ran to the living room where she had left the polaroid ready, left the vase on the coffee table and took the camera hurrying back to the front door.

"Now, look this way and say cheese!" She said and snapped the picture. "Now you can leave."

"Ok, good night Higurashi-sama."

"Good night mom."

Naomi closed the door and stayed in the hall shaking the picture and waiting for the image to appear.

When it finally did, she couldn´t help the feeling of hopelessness just looking at Kagome eyes. Even in the photo she could she the eyes of her daughter showing her true feelings in spite of the smile that seemed to have been forced into her features. Kagome just looked forlorn and aloof, any hopes she might have for tonight vanished at the sight.

Who would have guessed people would actually read this? I started writing it for myself, in a futile attempt to get rid of my obsession with Inuyasha. Joke´s on me, it´s getting worse every day. Thanks everyone for reading, hope to update soon.

PS: I looked for a real dress for Kags graduation party, if you want to check it out, here´s the link, just remove the spaces.

www. /wp" content /uploads/2016/11/peach"prom"dresses"


	4. Chapter 3 A celebration

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just use them because she said that whatever happens next, she leaves it to the fan´s imagination. Well, this is just my imagination.

3\. A celebration

Kagome was feeling like an impostor drowning in a sea of cheering faces that greeted them upon arriving at the ballroom. She had decided to mask her feelings with a smile plastered on her lips. She would try to enjoy the loud music and the drinks she received every time a fellow graduate wanted to toast their accomplishments. She only took a few sips, but it was enough to make her feel dizzy. She danced with Hojo most of the night until her friends took her aside for a little girl talk.

""I hope you are ready Kagome"chan, tonight´s the night." Eri said to her with a mischievous grin.

Kagome swallowed hard. She knew she was the last virgin among them. She had heard Ayumi and Eri talk about their experiences with their boyfriends for quite a while. Yuka, on the other hand, had gone through a series of one night stands to fulfill her darkest fantasies, not wanting to be attached to any man. The three of them had been waiting for Kagome to join the club. She was almost nineteen now, a little old for a virgin in this era.

Kagome, however, was not eager to get to there yet, Hojo wasn´t even her boyfriend, just good friends, she told herself. They had been going out for a few weeks and whenever he tried to kiss her she would turn her face and offer him her cheek to peck on. He probably was getting tired of this, but he was too much of a gentleman to point it out to her.

Hojo had been very patient with her and she had decided he deserved a chance. Tonight, she was determined to put her fears aside. She wasn´t going to feel guilty, she had no commitments to anyone, so why did she feel like she was a traitor?

She took a deep steadying breath before answering.

"I think I am ready." – She said with false confidence in her voice.

"Really?" Ayumi said. "Finally!"

They all cheered and laughed around her.

"I was saving these for myself, but you deserve it girl."

Yuka took her hand and handed her a small box of condoms.

Kagome ´s face felt hot all of a sudden. She struggled to keep her smile in place anyway.

"Ok, I´m definitely not ready for this. This is not what I meant when I said I was ready, we haven´t even kissed yet, for kami´s sake!"

"Oh, trust me, have a couple of drinks, loosen up and see what happens later. I know Hojo-kun is a gentleman, but tonight anything can happen."

"Yuka, I don´t need this. Take it back. Kagome tried to open her hand and hand the little black box to her friend. But Yuka had already decided that she was too uptight, Kagome definitely needed to loosen up a bit.

"Ok, maybe you´re right. But it doesn´t hurt you to be ready. Just in case."

Kagome just sighed. She didn´t want to draw attention to herself. And Yuka may be right. Someday, in the distant future, she might need the condoms.

She gave her friend a small smile and put away the little box in her clutch.

"I hope you don´t mind, but I´ve used some." Yuka added. "A toast to our little Kagome, tonight she is finally partying with us."

Kagome took the glass of champagne they handed her and drunk all of it in big gulps.

She was feeling happier when Hojo found her a couple of minutes later. He slid his arm around her slender waist and took her to the dance floor. They danced for a couple of minutes, but Kagome soon seemed to be getting tired or so Hojo believed. She felt his hot breath on her cheek while he whispered in her ear.

"I have a surprise for you waiting on the car".

Kagome had to cling to his shoulders when she started feeling that the room was spinning.

"Ok, let´s go then."

He took her small hand in his and led her out of the cluttered hall.

Kagome stumbled behind Hojo, feeling the cool breeze hit her face when they reached the limo. She shivered when he put his arms around her shoulder in a very intimate touch. He reached behind her and opened the door for her, help her sit down and closed it with a loud thump after she was inside. She breathed in slowly, trying to settle her nerves and smelling the leather of the seats and the faint aroma of tobacco and booze that lingered in the back of the vehicle.

She was starting to feel a little claustrophobic when she saw Hojo had sat next to her and was getting closer, she had nowhere to escape. She reprimanded herself, Hojo would never behave in an indecent manner, she shouldn´t be trying to escape him.

The car started moving and she felt dizzy again, her stomach making a gurgling noise inside of her. She closed her eyes begging not to be sick right there and then. She heard the noise of the bottles clinking together when the car started to move but felt too lazy to open her eyes. She must have fallen asleep for the next thing she knew when she opened her eyes was Hojo had taken one of her hands in his two, looking intently at her.

"Kagome-chan," he started to say, "I know we haven´t been going out for long, but we have known each other for years. I have been very patient with you, and you finally accepted to see me. I feel that you have been holding back and I believe I know the reason. You are a very formal girl, being brought up in a shrine and all that, I believe you need a commitment. And I´m going to give it to you."

Kagome´s eyes opened wide in shock, where was he going with this speech? What did he want from her?

He shoved his left hand into his pocket and produced a small black velvet box while his right hand went to the front of the box to pop it open.

"Kagome-chan, would you be my girlfriend?"

He opened the little box to produce a golden heart locket, not much different from one she had given to certain hanyo a few years ago.

"Do you want to look inside? He asked her sounding hopeful and eager.

Kagome shut her eyes forcefully, not wanting to show her teary eyes to Hojo. She felt her stomach churning and tasted a foul flavor in her mouth.

"Please take me home." She whispered, putting both of her hands over her mouth.

Hojo was appalled. An urge to vomit was not among the answers he had been expecting. He couldn´t hide the disappointment when he spoke.

"Whatever you like my lady."

They arrived at the shrine steps in a couple of minutes, the silence in the car was almost unbearable by then. But Hojo was as kind as usual making Kagome feel even more guilty, if possible.

He went down the car and around it to open the door for her.

They slowly walked up the steps in silence.

"Are you feeling any better?" He asked her.

"Yes, much better, I´m not used to drinking that much, sorry."

"Don´t worry about it." He stopped walking midway between her house and the shrine. For the second time that night he took her hands in his. Kagome shuddered and he rubbed his hands up and down her arms trying to warm her. He was getting closer, his face only inches from hers.

"You are worth the wait Kagome-chan, if you give me a chance, I´ll make you see this is the right thing for you."

Kagome closed her eyes for a moment, this didn´t feel right, it was the complete opposite of what she remembered feeling in Yash's arms. She still remembered vividly the warmth in her body anytime Ysh was close to her, how her heart would run out of control when he had held her or how her blood seemed to boil when they kissed. Instead, she was feeling cold and dead inside now that it was Hojo the one holding her.

She could sense Hojo´s staring at her but she didn´t want to look at him and realize his eyes were not the right color, or his smile was missing some fangs.

She felt Hojo's arms around her shoulders bringing her closer to his body. She could feel the warmth of his body in the cool of the night and she wanted to let this warmth comfort her, but her body refused to let her. She brought her hands to his chest and tried to put some distance between them. One of Hojo´s hands went to her chin lifting it to meet his lips.

Kagome was frozen for a moment while Hojo was becoming more demanding, he was trying to make their mouths connect. Kagome was struggling with him while trying to ignore the sound of an alarm that had gone off. She gave Hojo a shove that knocked him off balance while she turned around trying to find the source of the sound, but there was nothing there. The only thing she could actually hear was the wind that was whispering in the branches of the Goshinboku.

She closed her eyes again covering her ears with her hands. Behind her eyes, she could clearly see golden eyes staring at her with a frown. She could hear him growling like he did whenever he felt threatened or when he was downright furious.

She turned around again to face Hojo who was looking at her from the floor with a questioning look, she didn´t have the strength to face him, she felt extremely embarrassed at the moment.

"I´m sorry, this was a mistake" Was all she could manage to say before her throat choked a small cry and tears began running down her face. "I´m so sorry." She repeated and run away.

Hojo didn´t follow her. He knew he had lost the battle. He had known for a while that her heart didn´t belong to him, but he was confident that he could make her forget about the other man, the one that had hurt her so bad that caused her once bright eyes to lose that spark they used to have.

Tonight, he had lost all hope, she still belonged to someone else and he was done fighting, her heart would never be free.

Hi there! I bet you all thought Hojo was about to propose, lol. I entertained the idea for a while but it didn´t feel right.

Somebody mentioned in a comment if I was trying to have an American style prom, and the answer is no, at least not intentionally. I couldn´t find much information about how Japanese students celebrate their graduation, most of it referred to graduation from university, which wasn´t the case. So, I opted for something we could relate to. The same happened with the flowers, I´m almost certain there were no roses in the feudal era, but I couldn´t find any information, so the line about Inuyasha never giving her roses would be an anachronism, I suspect.

Anyway, I hope you keep reading and thank you very much for your comments.


	5. Chapter 4 Winds of change

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just use them because she said that whatever happens next, she leaves it to the fan´s imagination. Well, this is just my imagination.

Chapter 4- Winds of change

The first lights of the day found Kagome sitting on her bed, her knees bent to support the weight of her head and her arms holding her legs. She hadn´t even bothered to undress. She had cried until she felt she had no more tears left, feeling that those golden eyes had been spying on her the whole time. At first, they were scolding her, but they have become tender and supportive.

"Kami, I miss him so much I can barely breathe. What can I do?"

She had tried to forget and it hadn´t work. She had tried moving on and it was a huge mistake. There were five hundred years between them, an obstacle that had seemed impossible to overcome. But she had done it before. She had to try again. With that thought in mind, she felt a little better. She decided to have a bath and change before breakfast was ready, she didn´t want to worry her mother any more than she already had.

As she stepped into the hot stream she felt invigorated. The numbness she had felt in her limbs leaving her as the warmth of the water cleansed her of the depressing feelings that had tormented her the last couple of hours.

After getting out of the shower Kagome wrapped her body in a towel, she chose some clothes randomly, got dressed and combed her hair. She didn´t even look at herself in the mirror afraid of she might see.

As she was about to leave her bedroom she saw the clutch her mother had lent her for the party last night. She should give it back before taking the dress to the dry cleaners. Remembering Yuka´s present she opened the clutch and retrieved the little box.

"I´d better give it back to Yuka," she whispered to herself while putting the condoms in her skirt pocket. "she will be very disappointed."

Kagome couldn´t help but feel relieved when she thought about what had happened the previous night. It would have been a huge mistake. She was not one to take love lightly. She had tried to fill the hole in her heart with Hojo´s tenderness. She had tried to return his feeling, but she had failed.

Now it was time to face her true feelings. She had hidden them from the rest of the world for so long and she had hoped they would eventually disappear.

But her heart wouldn´t let go of his memory.

All her efforts had been unsuccessful. She had to try something new now.

Kagome went down the stairs looking for her mother. She needed her advice, her comforting touch.

She found a half-drunk cup of warm tea on the kitchen table along with her mother´s glasses and a polaroid picture she had taken last night.

Kagome picked up the picture and looked at her own image in it. She looked nice, she thought, but her eyes were empty. Her mother had probably noticed.

She had to find her and talk to her, acknowledge her feelings at last and hope her mother would not be disappointed. She took the picture and put it in her pocket together with the condoms. Today everyone she knew was likely to be disappointed by her.

Walking through the front door and inhaling deeply, Kagome stepped outside of the house. The day was bright and warm; the end of the summer was approaching slowly. Her steps took her to the Goshinboku before she could tell what she was doing. She stretched an arm and touched the warm bark of the ancient tree. Soon all the leaves in the trees surrounding the Higurashi Shrine, including this one, will be turning red, orange and yellow before falling off the branches.

Kagome had always enjoyed the changing of the seasons, each having something to look forward to. The snow and the cozy fireplace in the winter, the blooming flowers of spring, the bright sun of summer days and of course, the color changing leaves in fall. These days all she could think about was how beautiful the forest would look in the feudal era coming fall. How the air would be crisper and cleaner. How the birds and small animals would slowly quiet down until the silence of winter would finally arrive.

Sitting down among the protruding roots of the tree, Kagome thought about what the future might bring her. She hadn't even applied to college. She had no hopes of a bright future. She would probably just help around the shrine and watch the seasons change. The winter in this era wasn´t as quiet as it was in feudal Japan. Even the small details made a huge difference between the Sengoku Jidai and her era.

She stopped her thoughts right there. The key word in the last sentence being "her era". She didn´t feel like she belonged in this era anymore. It had been so obvious and yet she had struggled with the feeling, afraid to hurt her family and friends.

She had tried to be a good friend, a good daughter, a good student. She had done all that was expected of her and it had made her thoroughly unhappy. Once, before the well closed, she had thought about choosing one of its sides. She thought she would have to choose between her time and the Sengoku Jidai someday.

She had been wrong. She was never allowed to choose. She was stuck here and now, the only choice she could make was to move forward, fulfill her duties and be what it was expected of her, that was all.

Without noticing it, she was making her way to the ancient well house. Slowly she descended the steps and held tightly to the wooden frame. She sighed heavily and closed her eyes. As usual, his golden eyes appeared in front of her when she thought of him. With tears brimming her lashes, she allowed herself to summon him.

"Inuyasha, I want to see you." She didn´t speak the words out loud, but she felt the power behind them nevertheless.

A soft wind blew from the well and Kagome looked down. She almost couldn´t believe what she was seeing. She didn´t have time to think about it when she felt her mother´s presence behind her. Kagome knew what she needed to do the moment she felt the light breeze in her face. But how would she ever tell her mother what she had decided?

"Kagome, what's wrong?" She heard her mother say while she walked down the steps.

"Mama… I…" Kagome turned around to face her mother still unable to give words to her feelings.

She felt her mother´s arms in her shoulders supporting her, she saw her smile and the love in her eyes.

"It´s ok." The soft tone in her mother´s voice told her everything she wanted to hear.

Kagome nodded her head. No more words were needed. She could tell her mother had known what she had been feeling all these time and that she supported her decision, as she had always done. She thought for a moment of everything she would leave behind, she would have liked to say goodbye to her friends, to Souta and Jii-chan, but she was afraid of missing the opportunity so she just braced herself and jumped. She finally had realized it was time for her to be selfish.

Her heart was pounding heavily in her chest when she was surrounded by the familiar glow of the well. She felt her body weightless while crossing the barrier of time.

"I´m finally coming home"

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Ok, I wanted to update twice this week because I don´t know when I´ll be able to update next.

Hopefully, I´ll be back in a week´s time, see you then.


	6. Chapter 5 Homecoming

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

Finally! This is the part I wanted to write, I hope you like it.

5 Homecoming

Inuyasha was standing in front of the well sniffing the air around it.

"It´s her smell, I´m sure, it is her." He thought to himself.

He leaned down to take another whiff at the scent that was so familiar to his nose when he saw a small dark figure climbing the walls of the well. He reached down his hand, his heart racing in his chest, and grabbed her hand in a firm grasp. She almost flew out of the well in front of his eyes. She was here, finally. He could see her, smell her, touch her.

"Inuyasha, I´m sorry. Have you been waiting for me?"

He almost choked on his words, still getting over the idea that this was not a dream.

"Kagome. You baka. What have you been doing?"

He couldn´t help himself, he needed to hold her close to his heart, feel her warmth, smell her delicate scent and never let go of her. Inuyasha felt her tiny arms sneak around his waist and hold on to him. She also needed the contact, he thought.

He was about to cry in happiness, his heart swelling and his throat tightening. He took one steadying breath when he felt his friends approaching from the village. He couldn´t embarrass himself in front of them all. Unwillingly, he loosened his hold on her and let her see her friends. After all, they had missed her too.

The commotion that Kagome´s return caused in the village was something never seen before by its inhabitants. The small party led by Miroku and Sango came in sight with a chorus of laughter and cheering. Their first stop was their home. Sango wanted Kagome to meet her children and share a bit of the happiness she had helped them built. They stayed inside sharing tea and stories about the time they had been apart. After tea, they headed for Kaede´s hut, almost killing the old lady from the shock of seeing Kagome again.

By dinner time all the village had heard that the priestess that had helped defeat Naraku had returned to them and everybody wanted to pay their respects. Small groups of people came in and out of Kaede´s hut bringing flowers, fruits and all kind of small presents. The little hut was so crowded that Kagome suggested they should all go outside. Soon there was a small bonfire in the center of the village where many pieces of meat and fish were roasted filling the night with their delicious smell. The women had brought vegetables and rice from their homes and some men improvised music in their rustic instruments.

The small gathering had turned into a celebration, children were playing and dancing around the fire, some parents had joined them and the rest were chatting and laughing. Kagome hadn't had a minute to herself since she had crossed through the well. However, she felt happier than any day of the last three years. Everybody was enjoying the celebration.

Everybody except for a sulky hanyo who had perched himself on a tree branch since the small gathering was taken outside of Lady Kaede´s hut.  
This was the happiest day in many, many months and all these people were ruining it. It was one thing to share Kagome with his friends, they had missed her too, nothing like him, of course, but they had felt her absence and had helped him go on without her. But the rest of the village? What gave them the right to attract her attention for so long? It wasn´t fair. It was getting late and he hadn´t had more than two minutes alone with her.

He came down the tree landing with a loud thump and made his way through the merriment until he reached her.  
She was sitting between Sango and Kaede, with Shippou curled at her feet and surrounded by lots of strangers, at least to him they were. When she saw him coming, her eyes lit up and she gave him a shy smile, never breaking eye contact. His heart was thundering in his chest, he thought everyone would hear it, but it didn´t stop him. He stood in front of her and extended his hand.

"Let´s go." He said it in a firm voice so she heard it clearly.

She didn´t ask where or why. She just stood up and took his hand. They walked hand in hand avoiding the small crowd until they reached the edge of the village, then Inuyasha put his hand around her slender waist and brought her closer to him before jumping to the trees. He hopped from tree top to tree top making Kagome feel exhilarated by the feeling of the wind in her face and the firm grasp of his arms around her. He stopped when they reached a cliff, Inuyasha seated himself on a large branch bringing Kagome to his lap, sitting her between his legs, her back to his chest and her head tucked safely under his chin.

After spending endless minutes with her eyes closed trying not to miss anything during their small flight, Kagome finally opened her eyes. She had been trying to savor every little detail because she was not sure this was real or just another trick of her mind. Slowly she followed his gaze and looked up to the cloudless night sky. It was a sight that never ceased to amaze her. The black cloak of the sky splattered with millions of little bright dots dancing around, chasing the silver surface of the moon on its journey.

Kagome rested her head on his shoulder and gave a sigh.

"Wow, the night sky is beautiful.

She waited for his usual "Keh!", but heard nothing. She turned in his arms to face him with a surprised look in her eyes.

"What? You have nothing to say?" She asked him. "No remarks about how silly I am about the stupid stars?"

"No." He said in a low voice, almost a whisper. "I came here very often when you were gone. I guess I started to like the stars."

She was utterly astonished. When did Inuyasha become a nostalgic person? How did this happen? It was because she was gone?

"You missed me." She smiled happily and looked at his embarrassed face which he was trying to hide.

"Keh! Like I would miss being yelled at and sat every time you felt like it." He turned his head towards her, his golden eyes stared down at her brown ones. It seemed to them like time had frozen, neither daring to move. And then he lowered his head, his nose was almost touching hers, his warm breath caressing her cheeks. "Did you miss me?"

Kagome felt her knees go weak and her heart beat loud. It was fortunate that he was holding her or she would have fallen to the ground. She had her palms firmly planted on his chest and could feel the violent race of his heart under them. She was not sure that her voice would be audible in that moment, but she tried it anyway.

"I did." She mumbled. "I missed you so much."

She couldn´t speak anymore because she felt the brush of lips against hers. It was so light as the touch of a feather, as if he was afraid of breaking her with his kiss.

Inuyasha grazed his lips softly up and down hers. He wasn´t sure if he was allowed to kiss her, so he started it slowly in case she would get angry and decided to _"oswari"*_ his ass. He would wait for a sign that she wanted to be kissed before letting himself go.

Kagome waited with her eyes closed for his next move. _"I´m going to wake up any moment."_ she thought. But as the seconds passed and the warm feeling of his lips didn´t disappear she decided to go with it. She moved her hands from his chest to his head, running her fingers through his thick mane as she had always wanted to but had never dared before.

And that was the sign he had been waiting for. Inuyasha crushed her to his chest in a strong hug, his hands caressing her back and keeping her steady against his frame. Kagome threw back her head to give him better access to her mouth. His tongue delicately drew the outline of her lips before parting them to taste the sweetness of her mouth. Her own tongue welcomed his in a slow dance, first timidly brushing against the other and as the kiss became more daring, openly battling each other. Her lips sucked on his tongue and his teeth bit her lower lip, carefully avoiding the fangs. But she had thrown caution to the winds, she wanted him to bite her tender flesh, she wasn´t afraid. She boldly ran her tongue around his fangs to prove it to him and this sudden motion seemed to distract him.

They broke apart, both of them panting and struggling to breathe. Inuyasha left hand came to rest on her cheek, his thumb gently stroking it. Their eyes closed and their foreheads together. This wasn´t the first time they´ve kissed, but it was very different from the previous ones, they had been sweet and pure, almost chaste. This time the experience was devastating, like an all-consuming fire that left them both trembling and thirsty for more at the same time.

"By all the Kamis Inuyasha," she said in a breathless voice, "Where did you learn to do that? Have you been practicing?"

"Keh! I had never tried it before." He paused to fill his lungs with air. "I learned it from Miroku."

"What?" She almost shouted in utter disbelief while a mental image of both guys appeared in her mind´s eye.

"I didn´t mean I practiced with him." He sounded surprised by the shock in her voice. "I saw him and Sango. I wasn´t spying on them or anything, is just… When they just got married they were very enthusiastic and I run into them in the forest a couple of times." He managed to form a complete sentence even when he still hadn´t settled his own breathing. "I couldn´t help it, I didn´t mean to pry."

She laughed softly in his chest and snaked her hands around his waist. All the emotions of the day and the sleepless night preceding it were finally catching up with her. She felt her body hot and heavy, especially below her waist, after that devastating kiss. But she had little energy left in her. She closed her eyes and tried to suppress a yawn, unsuccessfully.

Inuyasha was also feeling hot and hard in the same areas. He was elated and didn´t want the night to end. But he saw her yawn and then shiver from the cool night air. He remembered that human females were fragile and it was his duty to take care of Kagome from now on. He took off his **suikan** * and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Come on." He said and got up in the branch dragging her up from his lap.

She rubbed the fabric of the fire rat robe against her cheek and inhaled deeply taking comfort in the familiar fresh wooden scent that was all his. She then looked at him, her eyes half hidden by heavy lids, and smiled. Once again, she didn´t ask where they were going, completely trusting his decisions.

Inuyasha soared through the trees again, going back in the direction of the village but going east when he was approaching it. He was heading for his own cabin, the one that he had built for her and was waiting for her arrival.

Now, he could finally call it home.

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* Oswari: the command that Kagome uses to sit Inuyasha.

* Suikan: a sort of over robe with very large sleeves attached a few inches below the shoulder


	7. Chapter 6 A new home

6 A new home

When sunlight filtered through the thin slits on the bamboo blinds, Kagome finally woke up. Stretching lazily, she turned around in the comfortable bed. She was afraid to open her eyes in case she would find herself in her own bedroom, at home, alone again.  
Last night was like a dream; she still felt that heat and dampness in her nether regions, but unlike the last three years, today she woke up happy. She knew what her body needed, what it has been asking for during her lonely nights away from him, and for once she felt she was closer to satisfaction than ever before.

After that heated kiss on the tree, Inuyasha had taken her almost sleeping form to a cabin in the woods. She had been dozing on and off most of the ride, so she wasn´t sure where they were, but it didn´t matter anyway. They were together, he had kissed her, he was behaving like the sweetest guy she had ever met. That was all that mattered to her. When he stopped moving and put her down she was half awake. She saw his silhouette in the dark trying to light a fire in the hearth. Slowly, the reddish light spread around and she was able to see better. What she had supposed was a hearth on the floor in the middle of the room, like many of the other huts she had known. Only that it wasn´t anything like that. It was built into a black stone wall, like a fireplace, between the kitchen area and where they were standing now. Around her, the furniture resembled a modern Japanese living room, only more rustic. There were a low table and a set of very comfortable looking leather cushions on the right corner. To the left, she could see a table and chairs and against the walls wooden cabinets that resembled the kitchen of her own home. She sat in one of the cushions in front of the fireplace and looked around, her eyes huge absorbing every visible detail.

"Is this your home?" She asked bewildered.

He seemed to turn red in the face, she wasn´t sure if it was because of the light from the fire or because he was embarrassed.

"It is yours." He answered looking down. "I built it, but you know me, I prefer to live in the open."

"You built it for me?" She would have screamed if she had the energy, but she felt exhausted.

"Keh! Miroku was pestering me to build one after we finished building theirs. But I had no use for a hut. I belong in the forest. I tried to make it look like your house, but the carpenters around here are dumb, they don´t know how to make many of the stuff, even with my instruction and sketches."

"Really? I think they did an excellent job." She said hiding another yawn with her palm.

"You can inspect everything tomorrow with the light of the sun. Now you need to sleep."

"But I don't want to sleep, please."

She felt like a small child but she still wasn´t sure she had been awake this whole time. She still was afraid she would wake up any moment.

Inuyasha ignored her protests and led her by the hand through a small corridor that seemed to be completely made of shoji*. He had brought a lamp with him and the effect of the light on the rice paper made her feel safe and cozy. The golden glow of the light and the warmth of Inuyasha hand holding hers gave her a sense of belonging that she hadn´t felt in a long time.  
Inuyasha opened the last shoji to their left and let her in, the light of the candle gave the room a very intimate ambient. Kagome let out a sigh, she had hoped to have a home with Inuyasha one day, but she had never imagined what that place would look like. What she had seen up to this moment had surpassed anything she would ever dare to dream. The place was intimate, cozy and warm, even if modest or rustic. He had worked very hard to make the humble hut a place that resembled her own house, yet it was so different.

The bedroom he was showing her had a full-size bed with yellow covers and tan pillows. She could see a small table under some shelves that resembled a desk in one corner of the room, right next to a large window that was now covered with bamboo blinds. There was even a small chest of drawers in the other corner of the room.

"The bathroom is right across the hall if you need to use it. There is no hot water, you have to heat it up if you want to bathe. I tried to get anything you might need, the water in the basin is fresh, Rin helped cleaning today so you could find everything ready when you arrived. Tomorrow we can make a list of other girly stuff you might need and I´ll try to get it for you. "

She didn´t know what to say, it was so much to process at the moment, he was giving her a house, a place they could both call home. Her eyes suddenly felt the stung of tears, but these were happy tears, for once she was relieved to let them flow freely.

Inuyasha, on the other hand, was never glad to see her crying. What had gone wrong? He had worked so hard in this cabin and now she seemed sad, she didn´t like it.

"Kuso*!" He swore in a low voice. "If you don´t like it I can build another one, you don´t have to cry."

He felt so stupid, he had been proud of the work he had done. It hurt him like a punch in the stomach, a surprise attack that found him defenseless.

"It will take a while, but don´t worry, I will fix it."

He had to, he couldn´t stand to see her crying.

"No, please! I don´t want any other." She said between sobs. "This place is perfect. I… Is just that…" She took a deep breath and tried to stop crying. "It´s just perfect."

He had left the lamp on the little bedside table so he had both hands free. She felt his arms around her waist and felt him scoop her up in his arms. He hugged her close to his chest as he whispered in her ear.

"Baka*, there´s no need to cry."

He carried her securely and put her down gently on the bed.

"You need to rest now, good night." He kissed her forehead and with that, he got up and turned to leave.

"Wait! You are not going to sleep here?" She touched the bed for emphasis. "Where are you going to sleep?"

"Where else? In the trees, as usual."

"But why? This is your house, you built it, you don´t need to sleep in trees anymore."

Inuyasha looked at her and then to his feet, he seemed to be thinking very carefully what to answer.

"I´m looking out for you. Even if I have been accepted in this village it doesn´t mean that I can dishonor you. People will talk and it can be very harmful, trust me."

His eyes were still glued to the floor and she could sense how hard it had been for him to let his guard down.

"We have slept under the same roof many times," she said trying to convince him, "it never bothered you before. And after you dragged me out of that party. What do you care what others may think?"

"It´s different now," he answered finally lifting his gaze from the floor boards. "Look, we can talk tomorrow, now it´s late and you are very tired. Don´t worry, I won´t go far, I´ll be watching over you while you sleep."  
He didn´t give her the chance to argue anymore, he just grabbed his suikan that she had just taken off, turned around and left.

Kagome wasn´t scared to be left alone, she had spent many nights in these woods and knew her way around it as if it was her own backyard. But she had wanted him with her. She knew she was being shameless and didn´t care. Too much time had gone by until she finally was allowed to be near him, and now he says he worries about her reputation.

"Baka" she thought to herself.

Tomorrow they will have a talk and she will tell him he was being stupid, but tonight, she was too tired and the bed was truly comfortable. She covered the lamp until the fire was extinguished and wrapped herself up in the soft comforter.  
"Tomorrow." she thought to herself and sighed.

Meanwhile, in the forest, Inuyasha was too excited to sleep. He made a round around the little cabin and then the forest to make sure there were no threats to Kagome´s wellbeing.

When the moon was high in the sky, he finally fell asleep in a tree nearby the village. He made sure to be in plain sight so that anyone walking near the rice fields would see him. This way he would make sure there wouldn´t be any gossip about her. He would sleep for a couple of hours at least, he didn´t need more. And after sunrise, he would get some fruit for Kgs´s breakfast, and maybe some honey too. A celebration was in order, just for the two of them.

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*Shoji: in traditional Japanese architecture, it can be a door, window, often sliding, or room divider. It consists of a wooden frame and translucent paper hold together by a bamboo lattice.  
*Kuso: Swear word. Damn it, darn it.  
*Baka: Stupid. Idiot.


	8. Chapter 7 After dawn

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi,

7 After Dawn

"Oi, Kagome! Are you up yet?"

Kagome heard the voice of the hanyo and smiled. She had been awake for a while but didn´t want to leave the comfort of the bed.

"Good morning Inuyasha!" She yelled, "Come in, I´m awake."

She sat up and waited for Inuyasha to enter the bedroom.

"Good morning, did you have a good night?" He asked shyly.

Kagome looked at him suspiciously, he had been acting very different since they were reunited the day before, but sheepish and fidgety was not a usual mood in him.

"Yes, thank you. The bed is very comfortable. What are you hiding there?" She asked noticing his hands behind his back.

"I´m not hiding anything. It´s just some stupid flowers I stepped on, I thought they smelled good and maybe you…" He produced the flowers in front of her as he slowed down his speech and swallowed a lump that had formed suddenly in his throat.

"If you don´t want them I´ll throw them away." He said looking pissed.

Kagome was flabbergasted when she was presented with a small bouquet of fragrant wild flowers, so beautiful and precious to her that she couldn´t help compare the thoughtful gift from her hanyo to another little bouquet she had received recently.

"You stepped on all of them?" She asked trying to hide her smirk. It was really amusing seeing him so embarrassed.

"Keh! You want them?" He stretched the hand that was holding the flowers as if they were burning him.

"Of course I do."

She took the flowers and inhaled deeply. It always amazed her how the smallest of things could be so different here. The little bouquet held a bunch of colorful wildflowers, purple, pink white and yellow. She wasn´t sure she had ever seen flowers like these in her time, and certainly none of the flowers she did see smelled this good. She couldn´t help comparing them with the expensive bouquet she wore the night of her graduation. She didn´t notice the smile that graced her pretty features when she looked up and saw him turning red in the face.

Inuyasha had remembered that his mother was always happy whenever he gathered flowers for her. Her usual melancholic eyes would light up and she would reward him with a huge smile and lots of kisses and hugs.

He was relieved to see that Kagome reacted in the very same way, and the smile was also there. He wouldn´t mind if she kissed him too.

"Inuyasha, I just remembered I didn´t even bring my toothbrush with me. Do you have a spare one?"

"Keh!" He fleered at her. "There ain´t no toothbrushes around here. Have you checked the bathroom yet?"

Kagome was taken aback, she hadn´t really thought about it since she had always brought her hygiene products with her in her handy dandy yellow backpack.

"And how do you clean your teeth?" She asked following him to the bathroom.

He was crouching in front of a cabinet where he looked at some jars until he found one that was filled with what seemed to her like small twigs.

"Here," he said handing her one of them. "These are the toothbrush we use. You have to chew on them for a while and when it´s softened you can scrub your teeth with it."

Kagome took the offending object in her free hand while she kept the flowers in the other. She looked at the little twig and seemed to examine it for a while? Was it clean? What would it taste like? Then she looked up and realized there was a mirror in front of her. She had used the bathroom the night before but was so tired that didn´t bother to look around. Now that she saw the mirror she was horrified by her appearance. Her hair was a mess; her eyelids were crusty and to top it all her clothes were all wrinkled after sleeping on them.

"Oh, Dear Kami!" She covered her suddenly reddened face behind the flowers hoping that Inuyasha hadn´t noticed.

But it was too late, of course, he had noticed. She couldn´t feel more embarrassed.

Inuyasha, on the other hand, was fighting the urge to hug her again. Since they kissed the night before something seemed to have awakened in his soul, something he hadn´t experienced ever before. He felt the urgency to touch her, get lost in her scent, bask in her warmth and never let go. The emotion was so strong his hands were literally itching. And when he saw her so embarrassed and vulnerable, he couldn´t help it, his arms moved of their own volition around her small waist. Then he rested his chin on her right shoulder and looked at their reflection in the mirror and smiled. This is where they belonged, together. He thought they looked good like this and hoped she was seeing the same thing in their reflection.

"You look adorable wench." He whispered softly in her ear.

Kagome looked up into the mirror and saw the same image, her cheeks seemed to turn redder if possible. When their eyes met his cheeks also seemed to be tainted, she thought. Was he making fun of her? Did he really think she looked adorable? She didn´t even dare speak for fear of breaking the moment.

"I brought all the stuff people gave you yesterday so you can have some breakfast. I left the tea in the fireplace, I better go check if it´s ready while you get ready." He slowly let go of her and turned to leave the bathroom. "There´s a comb there too if you need to use it." He said pointing to the cabinet before sliding the door closed.

Inuyasha tried to busy himself with breakfast to avoid thinking about what had just happened. He looked at the table almost covered with the present from their neighbors. There was some fruit they could eat now with some rice, a piece of dry meat, some mushrooms and herbs to make tea. He knew he needed to get more food now that Kagome was here. It wasn´t like she could go back home and get supplies as she used to do when they were searching for the lost shards.

He was brought back from his thoughts when Kagome entered the kitchen all freshened up and glowing, the bouquet still in her hands. He couldn´t help the smile that spread his lips.

"Come sit the tea´s ready."

"I never knew you could cook." She said leaving the bouquet on the table. "Is there a vase we can use for the flowers? Or a jar maybe?"

Inuyasha turned to look in the cabinets for a vase he knew he had gotten in one of his demon hunting trips with Miroku. When he found it, he kneeled by the bucket of clean water he had brought from the river a while before, he filled the vase and went back to the table to put the flowers on it.

"Thank you, Inuyasha, for everything. I can see that the house is perfect the way it is. I couldn´t ask for anything better than this."

For the umpteenth time since the day before, Inuyasha´s ears and face felt very warm, not to mention the area in his chest that seemed to be getting larger and warmer with every beat of his heart.

"Wait till you see the garden. Well, it´s not actually finished, but I have planted some herbs and plants that I want you to see."

They smiled at each other´s, eyes locked for a few seconds until the sound of the boiling water demanded Inuyasha´s attention. Kagome made the tea while Inuyasha told her where everything was in the kitchen. After they had put away what they wouldn´t eat at the time, they sat in front of each other and ate in comfortable silence, enjoying the simple fact of being close and sharing a meal under the same roof, alone, for the first time in years.


	9. Chapter 8 Fishing expedition

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.  
This is a short one, but we need to keep moving forward.

8 Fishing expedition

Kagome was cleaning the table after washing the bowls. She was humming a song and smiling happily. She hadn´t always enjoyed doing the house chores, but now that she had her own place, she felt she was exactly where she was supposed to be. She still wanted more, but she felt she was getting what she had been wishing for since the first time she realized she was in love with Inuyasha.

The breakfast had been frugal, she didn´t think Inuyasha would be satisfied with just that after she had seen him devour large quantities of ramen, rice and anything edible in front of him. She had been searching through the jars in the cabinet and hadn´t found any more food. She knew the house had been empty since it was built, but she didn´t think about the food up to this moment.

"Inuyasha, we don´t have anything else to eat. We´ll have to take care of that. I wonder what job I can do around here for me to make a living."  
She expressed her thoughts out loud without noticing the change in Inuyasha face. He had been sipping his tea with a content smile on his lips until he heard her.

"You don´t have to worry about anything wench. Now that you came to live with … us I will take care of everything. I will provide for you." He said in a matter of fact tone, not expecting any replies from her.

"And am I supposed to just sit around and do nothing?"

She could feel her blood raising about to boil with his words. She was suddenly reminded of the differences between this era and her own. She was raised in a time when a woman was allowed to decide for herself what to do with her own life, she wasn´t used to be told what to do or to wait for a man to dictate her fate.

"There´s a lot you can do. You can talk to Kaede about it if you want. You have the spiritual powers of a Miko, remember?"  
His words seemed to appease the sudden anger surging inside of her.

"Ok, I think I could talk to Kaede about training me if she will have me."

"See? You can help a lot of people around here. But I will be providing for you wench, mark my words."

She didn´t mind his saying so this time. She had something she could do, she could help people, it was a good plan. She could let him have his pride if it meant so much to him.

"I better go hunt something then. I can exchange some meat with Rikichi or Humiko for rice and vegetables. Or maybe some fish?"

"Why not Miroku?" She asked curiously.

"Because he would just give away his food, no trading. Same with Kaede. They have to feed the kids and Rin. And in any case, I always share what I hunt with them, no need to change that."

With that, he implied that many things were about to change. But she didn´t ask what.

"Can I come with you? I need to practice with my bow. I see you kept it here." She pointed to the wall where she had spotted the bow and arrows hanging by the door along with his Tessaiga. She realized he had left his sword there so that it would protect the house with its barrier.

"Fine, let´s go then. I want to be back before noon to make the exchange."

They left the house and Kagome climbed on his back, she felt overjoyed to be able to travel on his back like in old days. They headed to the forest trying to find rabbits or deer, but they had no luck there, so they decided to try and fish something from the river bank.

The sun was quite hot by the time they reached the shore. Inuyasha, as usual, used his claws to catch the fish but Kagome wanted to try her bow on them from the river bank while Inuyasha laughed at her failed attempts. She was getting frustrated until she had an idea, she took off her shoes and got in the cold water. Despite the hot sun, the water felt pretty cold, but she wouldn't back down.

Inuyasha was amused by her sheer determination, this woman never gave up. It was one of the things that he loved about her. That and her big heart, her smile, her smell. What the hell was wrong with him? He was acting like a smitten girl, today he had brought her flowers and called her adorable. He knew that he loved her, but this was ridiculous. If Miroku or Shippou learned any of these, he would never hear the end of it.

He was shaking his head to dismiss the idea when he heard Kagome scream and then a huge splash. What just happened? He couldn´t see Kagome anymore. Where was she? The sound of her coughing and splashing was a relief, thank Kami, she was alright. He was by her side in just one leap.

"What happened? Are you okay?" The river was shallow in this part but she had managed to almost drown in knee high water.

He reached out his hand to try to lift her and to his surprise, she was smiling.

"I got it!" She was beaming proudly as she got up, with his help, and produced a large fish attached to an arrow.

"I slipped on the rocks trying to get it out of the water."

Inuyasha had to laugh at that.

"Yeah, you got it alright." He confirmed.

He had caught half a dozen fish with his bare hands, all of them bigger than hers, but he still felt proud of her.

"Now get out of the water before you catch a cold as well."

He grabbed her free hand and guided her to the shore. By then she was trembling and her lips were turning blue.

Inuyasha just looked her up and down before he took off his suikan.

"Here, take off your wet clothes, you can wear this while it dries."

The colors returned to her face when she took the garment from his hands. She went behind a tree for a moment and stripped off her wet clothes.

"I had to wash these anyway." She mumbled to herself and started to undress smiling. She felt sexy wearing nothing but his suikan.

"I wonder what will he think when he sees me like this?"


	10. Chapter 9 Warmth

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.

Here goes another one, things are getting hot, not a full lemon yet, but be warned.

9 Warmth

Kagome wrapped the suikan around her naked body with the sleeves secured around her waist and went back to where her hanyo was waiting. She looked at him expectantly, not knowing how he would react to her wearing his clothes.  
Inuyasha had lied down in a grassy spot enjoying the warmth of the sun. He had closed his eyes so Kagome thought he was sleeping.

She spread her wet clothes over some rocks and went to sit by him. Soon she was lying down next to him. He opened one eye and surveyed her, she was still shaking. Inuyasha stretched his right arm to make room for her, she understood the gesture and lied her head on his shoulder. Inuyasha moved his hand up and down her back trying to warm her up, and after a little while, the trembling began to subside.

Kagome didn´t know how, but she ended snuggled up to his warm body. She wanted to say it was because she was feeling cold, but the sun was still hot and she could have easily warmed up by herself. Deep down she knew she was taking advantage of the situation.

Inuyasha was also perfectly aware of what he was doing. He had wanted to warm her up, true. But once he opened one eye to watch her all his good intention had disappeared. His suikan looked so good on her, but it did little to hide her assets.

He remembered the last time she had worn it like that, she had been just a girl then and he had caught a glimpse of her naked body, enough to haunt his dreams for years, though. Now her body had matured, he could tell even with her clothes on. And now seeing her almost naked he was convinced of it and couldn´t help but try to confirm his suspicion. He was nervous though, she had been very receptive of his hugs and kisses, but would she be open to going further than that? Or would she think he was a pervert? He certainly felt a **hentai** * at the moment. However, the only way to answer his questions was to let go of all his fears. This is what he wanted, he would man up and try to get it.

He turned to his left side so she could be face to face with her and used his free hand to lift her chin and make eye contact. They lied like that for a moment, their eyes locked and expectant. Yash's hand left her chin and cradled her cheek. Very slowly he closed the distance between their lips, giving her time to back away if she wanted. But she didn´t. She was right where she wanted to be, the loneliness of the past three years had vanished the moment she had looked into his golden eyes once again. No one could ever make her feel this way, she knew it now for sure. Nothing could replace this feeling, the connection between them, she had missed it for too long. But now she was here, so close to him that it seemed unreal.  
Kagome closed her eyes waiting for their lips to make contact and when they did once again she felt she had been struck by lightning. She felt the electricity run from her lips to her limbs and lodge itself in her loins. She felt it burning with such intensity she thought she would never feel cold ever again.  
Inuyasha felt it too, making him dizzy all of a sudden. He hugged her closer to him until he felt her full breasts pressing against his hard chest. He heard her moan and took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, his tongue invading and exploring her mouth. Kagome couldn´t stand still while this happened, she needed to touch him. Her soft hands wandered from his chest to his neck touching him timidly, one hand remained in the back of his neck while the other flew to his ears. She had always loved the furry appendages, now that she was allowed, she would touch them anytime she could get her hands on them.

As the kissing and petting intensified, Kagome started rubbing the back side of his calves with the soles of her foot, cradling his hip with her thigh while he traced the length of her neck with wet kisses, licking the pale flesh and teasing it with his lips and fangs. Kagome felt she was melting under his breath, now that her mouth was free all kind of noises escaped her lips. She slightly opened her eyes to try and locate the little white ears and finding them within her reach, she took one in her mouth and sucked on it trying to muffle the noises she made. This rewarded her with a low growl from her hanyo who was enjoying her attentions to its fullest. He felt himself getting harder and feared that she would be scared should she feel it too. When she didn´t back away, he continued trailing kisses down her collarbone and lower. He reached the opening of his suikan and kissed the skin exposed above it. He freed one of his hands while keeping her on her place with the other and very slowly traced the way up her side from her hip to her ribcage and down again until he found the courage to spread his palm over her breast. He felt her grasp for air and move her body to be closer to him, both of her hands were on his hair now, pulling gently on his locks towards her face. He followed her command and captured her mouth once again, his hand never leaving her breast, but caressing and stimulating the small hard pebble he had found out reacted to his attentions.

Kagome felt in heaven and didn´t want this moment to end. She opened her eyes in an attempt to watch his face in this moment of pure ecstasy. He lifted his head just a little and she was so shocked she let out a small cry. The purple marks of his yokai self were present, was he about to turn full demon on her?

Inuyasha was so startled by her cry he sat up and looked down at her frightened face.  
"Are you alright?" He asked afraid of the answer. He had crossed a line; he was sure now. He had scared her or disgusted her probably. What was he thinking? Such a pure being like her and a dirty half-breed like himself, it was too good to be true, he should have known.

"Your face… it´s..." she mumbled covering her mouth, unable to finish the sentence.

"What about my face?" He thought she liked his face, she had said many times in the past she liked him, and now she rejected him.

Inuyasha got up with his back to her, trying to hide his face from her and a certain part of his anatomy that he was still trying to relax, unsuccessfully.

"Your yokai marks, they appeared on your face. But you sound normal. Are you turning into a full demon?" She asked when she had quieted her racing heart.

Inuyasha took a deep breath and when he was sure he could face her, he turned around.

"I don´t think I am. Are the marks still there?"

"No, they are gone. Didn´t you feel you were losing control?" She was afraid to ask but needed to know the answer.

"No, I was always myself. But Is a good thing we stopped before we did something we would regret later." He was letting his pride do the talking, he knew it, but couldn´t help it. Years of self-preservation had taught him to mask his feelings.

His words were like ice water on her. He was already regretting what happened?

"Your clothes must be dry by now, I´ll go get the fish while you get dressed."  
He left her there, alone with her thoughts. She wanted to talk to him and find out if he truly regretted their moment of passion. But now she better did as he told her.

She got dressed and waited for him to find the way back to their home, they would have plenty of time to talk later when they had both calmed down.

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hentai*: a degenerate, a pervert.


	11. Chapter 10 The forest

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.

10 The forest

The way back was very silent. Inuyasha took her on his back once again but now he ran faster, he seemed to be in a hurry to get back.  
Kagome wanted to say something to ease his bad mood but didn´t know what. In the past, she had always managed to soothe him; it was that or they ended up screaming at each other. Either way, they always managed to get past their difficulties. Now, she couldn´t think of anything appropriate, she feared it was helpless.

 _"Everything´s gone wrong."_ Inuyasha thought to himself. Had he misread the signs? He had believed she felt the same way he did. He had waited a long time to take this step, maybe too long, and now he had screwed up. Kagome probably was too kind to tell him to get lost. Perhaps her feelings towards him were those of a sister or a mother?

 _"Shit. What do I do now dear Kami?"_ He found he was praying, pleading and begging to any deity that would listen. He did not want to go back to the life of the past three years, alone and miserable.

Many questions kept piling up in his mind. And he couldn´t answer any of them. Desperation was growing strong in his heart, a sense of hopelessness he thought he would never feel again after she had crossed the well. Was it only yesterday? It seemed to have happened so long ago.

Kagome was so immersed in her own turmoil she didn't notice they were headed in a different direction. When she finally did, they were approaching Lady Kaede´s hut. Inuyasha stopped by the door and let her down.

"Go with Kaede now, I´ll go exchange the fish and come back to pick you up later."  
That was all he said before running away in the direction of the rice fields.

The girl felt lonely and confused when he left her. She should better talk to Lady Kaede and clear her mind, she would feel much better after discussing her future with the older woman. She slid the bamboo blind on the door frame and entered the hut.

"Kaede oba-chan, are you there?"

It took a moment for her eyesight to adjust to the darkness inside. She found that the hut was empty and decided to go to the shrine. She could take the opportunity to worship while she was there. Praying always helped her clear her mind, and if Kaede was there they could discuss her training.

She found Lady Kaede burning incense on the main altar. The older woman was very glad to see her and accepted her as a student immediately. She could use her help at the shrine and around the village, she knew she wasn´t getting any younger and in few years the need for a trained Miko would be urgent.  
Mikos could be spiritual leaders of a community, but they were also healers. Kaede said she would train Kagome in her spiritual growth but she should find someone to help her with the herbs since the older woman had her hands full with Rin and her duties in the village.

"I think you should ask Jinenji, I know he was very fond of you and that he wouldn´t mind helping. You should take a couple of days to get settled first and then we can begin your training."  
The old lady said smiling fondly at the girl, her wisdom calming and comforting Kagome as if she truly were her own grandmother.

They spent a while praying inside the temple until Lady Kaede felt hungry. Kagome accompanied her to her hut and helped her cook a simple vegetable broth for lunch. They waited for Rin to return home before eating. Kaede said the little girl was learning to read and write with Miroku. He had put up a small school in the backyard of one of the wealthier families in the village. He taught the three children of that family together with Rin and all the children of the village whose parents could spare from working.  
Rin was a smart kid, Kaede said, she learned fast and she had hoped in the future the girl would help her in the shrine. She would have to be trained and Kaede was glad Kagome had reappeared in their lives, her help was very welcome.

When Rin arrived the three of them ate together the broth Kaede and Kagome had prepared and some rice Rin had made that morning. They talked for a while and when Kaede said she wanted to take a nap, the two girls left her alone and went to look for Shippou. Rin said he was probably playing with other kids in the forest. Shippou had made a lot of friends in the village and enjoyed playing with them whenever he was around.  
Kagome wanted to know where the little kitsune stayed when he was in the village. She wanted to ask Inuyasha to let the kit stay with them in their new house.

That thought took her mind back to Inuyasha and what had happened that morning. She had been left frustrated and confused, her body wanting to pick up where they had stopped earlier and her mind wondering how or what had triggered Inuyasha yokai blood to awaken. His life had not been endangered, he had the Tessaiga with him, there had been no need for him to let his yokai part take control of his body.  
Still immersed in her musing, Kagome didn´t realize they were inside the woods with no signs of Shippou or other children. Rin said they should go check with Sango and Miroku but the older girl wanted to take the opportunity to watch the forest for the first time since she got back.  
She sensed no threats around them, no yoki that could be considered a threat. The forest seemed to be as peaceful as it had been in her own time.

"Rin, did Kaede-baba purify the forest?"

"No, she never did anything like that. It would be a tremendous effort for her. Why do you ask?"

"It´ s just that I can´t sense any threats coming from the forest. It seems to have been cleansed of all demonic aura." Kagome closed her eyes and extended her hands in an effort to focus her senses. "Nothing but regular animals. Maybe my senses are dulled because I haven´t used them in a long time."

"No, you´re right. Ever since Inuyasha-sama became the guardian of the village he slew all the youkai that dared enter the forest. These days no demon defies his protection. Even when he is not around, they are afraid of the retaliation."

Kagome was speechless. Yesterday many people from the village had told her how grateful they were that Inuyasha had decided to stay with them. She heard Inuyasha had helped rebuild the village after Naraku´s final attack destroyed most of it. And now she learned he had also become a protector to its inhabitants.  
She hadn´t pondered the changes that Inuyasha had gone through since they last seen each other. He had grown, not only physically. Kagome had noticed his face had lost some of his boyish looks. His jaw was squarer, his cheeks less rounded and his eyes looked a bit smaller. His body had changed too, she thought while a hue of red covered her cheeks. His shoulders were broader, his arms seemed to be more muscular and he seemed to have grown taller, if possible. All in all, Inuyasha was not the immature child she had found pinned to a tree almost five years ago, and she was happy to have these facts brought to her attention. She had been so self-centered since she decided to jump through the well that she had not considered what he had been going through while they were apart. Well, now that it was made clear she felt a surge of pride swelling inside her chest. She needed to see him and talk to him, tell him that she loved him even if he turned full yokai. She loved all of him. He needed to be reminded of that.

She followed Rin back to the village in silence, the girl was a regular chatterbox, but Kagome heard nothing of what she had been mumbling about Sesshomaru and Jaken and how much she missed them. Her thoughts were far away, focused on a certain hanyo and what the future held for them.


	12. Chapter 11 Girl Talk

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.

11 Girl Talk

Sango had been busy with the kids all morning. She had fed them, played with them, changed little Riusey´s diaper. She had also cleaned the house and made breakfast and lunch. Now that the kids were taking a nap and her husband had gone back out to pray for an elderly woman in her dying bed, she finally could relax for a while.

When Kagome arrived at her friend´s hut she found her sitting in the sun, on a rock just outside her door. Sango had her eyes closed so Kagome thought she was asleep but when Rin approached her timidly, the woman opened her eyes.

"Rin-chan, you should remember never to sneak around a taijiya. I could have easily struck you if I hadn´t known it was you." She tried to admonish the girl, but her smile and the tone of her voice were not severe at all.

"I´m sorry Sango-chan. We thought you were asleep. Kagome -sama and I are looking for Shippou. Is he around here?" The young girl asked.

"I haven´t seen him since breakfast. He was going with Miroku to school. He must have been invited to eat with some of the families of the school´s children. Kagome -chan, is so nice to see you. How was your night? Did you stay at your new house?"

Rin made a face when the two friends started to giggle and talk about lady's stuff.

"I´ll go find Shippou on my own. If I find him I´ll tell him you are here Kagome -sama."

The two women smiled and waved goodbye to the girl as she left skipping down the road.

"Tell me all about it, Kagome -chan. What happened between you two? I know Inuyasha must be over the moon having you back here. He has been very lonely since you left."

"Sango-chan!" Kagome looked down when she felt her cheeks burn. She never thought her dear friend would be such a gossip.

"Oh, Sango. It´s been like a dream. Inuyasha has been very sweet. He brought me flowers this morning. And the house Sango, it´s like a fairy tale. I mean, it´s humble, but still, It´s lovely.

"Now that you are around, he may let us actually see the house. You know he didn´t even let us inside? He always said it wasn´t ready yet. After Miroku and he spent months building it and he drove the carpenters insane. I thought Inuyasha was building a shrine for you, my friend."

Both women laughed at this and Kagome could feel herself relax at last. She had been wound up since Inuyasha left her at Kaede´s hut.

"Sango-chan, I´m so happy to see you and Miroku together. And you have a lovely family too. I used to think about you guys, wondering if you finally settled down and if Miroku had kept his promise. I missed you all very much." She couldn´t prevent a tear escaping her eyes.

"We missed you too, thank you for remembering us, you are a big part of our family. We couldn´t have gone through the Naraku ordeal without you. To tell you the truth, we have been feeling guilty despite the happiness our little family brings us. We would watch Inuyasha sad and lonely face and we couldn´t do anything to help him. He has been an empty shell since you were gone, you know. Miroku tried to get him out of it for a while, he even suggested he should forget about you and take an interest in some of the village girls."

"Inuyasha was friendly with the girls of the village?"

She wanted to sound confident and only slightly curious but Sango knew her well, Kagome couldn't hide the hint of insecurity in her voice.

"Not really, he was still his usual sultry self, so it was difficult for them to approach him. But I´ve heard them whisper and giggle around him, you know girl´s stuff. Anyway, Inuyasha didn´t want to hear any of it. He said he was bound to you and that he would wait for you five hundred years if he had to."

When she heard that part, Kagome felt relieved, she smiled openly and tried to let go of her insecurities.

"You know, before we defeated Naraku, back in my time, Inuyasha and I had a moment. I thought we were finally getting closer after Kikyou died and he had had time to mourn. And then I was trapped five hundred years away from him. I did try to let go of his memory and move on, I just couldn´t. Our bond is too strong. When I finally realized what I had to let go was my other life, that´s when the well opened again."

She sighed then she smiled sadly thinking about the family she left behind.

"It´s not easy, though, to think you will never again see your mother, or fight with your little brother, or even put up with the eccentricities of your grandfather. All the things that you took for granted, gone forever." After she finished her sentence, Kagome realized how selfish she sounded, complaining about living her family to a woman who had lost almost all of was about to apologise to Sango when she spoke.

"Don´t be sad Kagome -chan. We are here for you. You are not alone. Inuyasha is here also, he would never leave you now that he got you back."

"I know, and I´m happy here. I haven´t been happy for a long time, Sango-chan. Here is where I belong. And Knowing Inuyasha was waiting for me makes it all worthwhile. He´s changed a lot while I was gone, he´s more mature and a lot more affectionate than I remember."

"Well he´s had three years to make up for, it gave him time to think and grow up. Has he declared his love for you yet?"  
Kagome ´s cheeks turned bright red at the question.

"Sango-chan!"

She looked down and tried to hide her embarrassment. Then she thought it better to seek for advice in her friend, despite the urgency she felt to bury her head in the ground.

"No, we haven´t talked about it, yet. We have kissed… a lot." She confessed. "And it´s getting more… intense every time we do it. Is it right Sango-chan? I mean, where I come from, couples don´t usually wait to… you know, they don´t wait until they are married to have intimacy. I don´t really know how things are done here, but being apart from each other for so long, I don´t want to wait any more than is necessary. In my era, many of my friends were no longer virgins and they were trying to get me to take the next step, and now that I´m back here with Inuyasha, I think I´m ready."

Kagome looked up again, her cheeks still flushed, but her look steady on Sango who was grinning broadly. Now that her friend was back, Sango finally had someone to talk to and share her opinions. The women in the village were kind, but none shared Sango´s view of the world like Kagome did. Maybe because she was raised to be a warrior, or because her mother had died when she was so young and she had to fend for herself in a male world. Whatever the reason, Sango felt more in tune with Kagome´s open mind than with the rest of the small village. And she loved her dearly, so she was going to leave all shame aside and be candid with her friend.

"I´m so glad you asked me Kagome -chan, any other woman around here would pretend to be shocked, even if many of them didn´t wait until they were married to have intercourse." She said that last part in a hush, in case anybody was around and heard them. "What you are experiencing with Inuyasha is the most natural thing for young couples. Of course, it is recommended to wait till you are married, and that it is also wise, but it doesn´t mean there are plenty of things you can do while you don´t actually do it.

Kagome smiled at her friend, they both shared a look that spoke of mutual understanding and while they were both red-cheeked by the topic, none of them backed down and went on for almost an hour talking.

When Sango´s kids woke up, Kagome helped her friend with them until Miroku returned home. It was still early and she decided she wouldn´t wait for Inuyasha, she had to learn her way back home. She asked her friends for directions and headed home while there was yet plenty of sunlight.


	13. Chapter 12 Awkwardness

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.

Hello! I noticed there´s been some glitches on the site. If you don´t understand what´s going on, maybe you missed some of the previous chapters.

Thank you so much to all of you that favorite and follow or comment on the story.

12 Awkwardness

After putting away all the supplies he had exchanged for the fish, Inuyasha filled the buckets with water from the river. He still wasn´t tired and badly needed some exercise, so he chose to chop some wood the hard way, using an ax. It would be useful too now that Kagome was home.

He had been trying to avoid thinking about her and all the insecurities that arose whenever he did.

These last three years he had worked hard to become acceptable, to build her a home so she would find it easier to leave her era behind. He had always kept in mind her promise, after all, she had kept it during their fight with Naraku. Never had he doubted her because Kagome had never lied to him. He never thought what might have changed during their separation and he dreaded picturing it now. He could not afford to lose hope now that she had returned to him. That fact was proof enough of her devotion, wasn´t it?

The sky was getting dark; he had lost track of time. He should go back to Kaede´s and escort Kagome back home. Their hut was built at a considerable distance from the village and she didn´t know the way. He should remember to show her the way around her new home, just in case she needed to come and go when he wasn´t around.

Just as he was putting away the last pieces of wood in the shed, he smelled her familiar scent not far from the cabin.

"What the hell does she think she´s doing?" He cursed in a low voice. She was sauntering down the road humming to herself and apparently very calmed.

"Oi, Kagome. What do you think you are doing all alone in the woods? You should be more careful wench!"

"Oh, hi there! Don´t worry, I have my bow and arrows with me. Besides I couldn´t feel any demonic presence in the woods. Apparently, youkais have been warned not to come near the village." She said smiling innocently.

"Keh! Anyway, there are still many dangerous animals around and men and is already getting dark. How did you find the way back?"

"Miroku told me how to. He said it was safe enough. He would have come with me if the girls had let him. Were you able to make the exchange for the fish?"

"Yeah, no problems with that. The pantry has enough for at least a week. There´s plenty of tea and rice too. I also got you water heating if you want to bathe. Come inside, it´s getting cold out here."

"Thanks, Inuyasha! I´d love a hot bath. Sango lent me some clothes so I can change into something clean."

They entered the house that was barely illuminated by the fire in the hearth. Inuyasha lit some lamps and gave one to Kagome.

"There is some clean cloth in the bedroom to dry you up. And you can find oils in the bathroom to scrub your skin if you need any of it." He spoke calmly but inside he was feeling very agitated. Kagome hadn´t mentioned what had happened earlier and it seemed to be out of her mind.

"I´d better start making dinner before I get in the bath," Kagome said.

She washed and peeled some carrots and turnips and put them to boil with some dried rabbit meat she had found. They still had some rice leftover from that morning, so that would be enough.

"Will you watch it in the meantime?" She asked the hanyo smiling.

"Sure, go ahead." He answered. He watched her disappear and heard the soft noises she made while bathing. It felt good to be part of such a domestic routine, he thought.

Kagome came out of the bath feeling invigorated. She put on a simple kosode Sango had given her, she had no clean underwear so she wore the same panties and no bra, she could wash them both after Inuyasha left. The white fabric of the garment was enough to cover her mid-thigh, which was longer than her usual skirt, she thought.

She went to the kitchen and found Inuyasha sitting in the corner with both legs crossed under his body.

"I think dinner is ready." He said.

Kagome filled two bowls with the broth and took them to the table where the jug of fresh water and the rice were already set.

" **Itadakimasu***!" She said and waited for him to repeat the words before starting to eat.

This time she found the food really tasty, or maybe she was really hungry.

They ate in silence, both thinking about what happened in the morning. While Kagome was building the courage to bring it up, Inuyasha found he was getting cold feet. He had spent the whole afternoon thinking how to approach the subject and he thought he was ready to discuss it with her. But now that they were face to face, he lost his nerve. He was such a coward when it came to facing her.

After finishing their meal Kagome started to clean up the table and Inuyasha got up to leave.

"Have a good night." He said and turned towards the door.

"Inuyasha wait!" She said. "Can we talk?"

Inuyasha lost what little confidence he had left when he heard these words. It didn´t sound good.

"I told you last night, I better go before it´s too late. We can talk tomorrow."

 _"Oh, no! We´re not waiting until tomorrow!"_ Kagome thought to herself.  
She wanted to clear the air once and for all, she wouldn´t spend the night worrying and tossing around in bed, alone.

"Please wait!"

But he was already out of the door.

"Oswari!" She yelled. And immediately heard the loud thump of Yash's body slamming the ground and the usual curse that followed.

" **Chikuso** *! Kagome!" He screamed outraged. "Why did you do that for?"

"I´m sorry, but we need to talk now. It can´t wait, please come back inside."

As the effect of the enchantment vanished he got up still angry and marched back inside.

"What do you want wench?" He asked her while he sat down in front of the fireplace by her side.

"Cut it out with that word, will you? I think we need to talk… about what happened today… at the river." She could barely say the words out loud, her cheeks burning suddenly.

"I have nothing to say, I don´t know what happened." He tried to sound pissed but in fact, he was trying to hide his fear of finding out what she had actually felt.

"Do you think it has something to do with your instincts?"

"Sure, why not? Because I am a beast that can´t control its impulses." He was getting angry and couldn´t hide it from her. But it hurt deep inside hearing her refer to him as an animal.

"Don´t say it like that please." She begged him with a broken voice. She didn´t mean to hurt him, she just wanted to find out what had happened. "Never talk about yourself like that. I didn´t mean to offend you."

He sighed loudly and bent his head, speaking in a low voice.

"I know. I probably scared the hell out of you."

"No, it´s not that." She spoke softly too, both trying to maintain the fragile atmosphere enveloping them.

"I mean, first I was shocked because I wasn´t expecting it, but I don´t fear you. I know you would never hurt me."

"I have hurt you before, don´t try to deny it. I wouldn´t forgive myself if I ever cause you real harm."

"Inuyasha, you are extremely powerful, if you had ever wanted to hurt me you could have easily done it. I would snap like a twig in your hands, it is a fact. But you always manage to avoid it, that is why I am positive you will never hurt me."

She smiled sweetly when his eyes met hers.

"If you were not afraid, why did you break apart from me? You didn´t want me to kiss you?"

There, he finally voiced his fear. Now he felt as if he was standing naked in front of her, waiting with baited breath for her answer.

"It was because… I´ve always imagined looking into your golden eyes when we… kissed" She said in a quivering voice. "I didn´t want to stop." She continued. "I enjoyed it very much." Now it was her turn to look down.

He took one of her hands into both of his, encouraged by her words.

"Kagome." He whispered her name softly until she looked up at him again. "I meant it when I said it was a good thing to stop. Not because I didn´t want to go on, but because I need to consider your honor first."

"Inuyasha, I told you before where I come from it is not considered a dishonor to…"  
"I know, but you must remember you are not living there anymore."

He sighed again before continuing.

"I was born a bastard, Kagome. And I always blamed my father for it, because he was not around to face the consequences of his actions. Now I understand my parents a lot better, but I believe they both rushed into a relationship without thinking of the future. In the end, my mother was left alone and dishonored, a single mother to a hanyo. I don´t want you to end up like her, so fragile and sad."

He made a pause in case she wanted to add something, he had explained his reasons, now he must go on with the speech he had rehearsed in his head.

"Kagome, I think we should marry, that way anything that happens between us will not be a cause of shame for you."

 **Itadakimasu*** A japanese word use to give thanks for the food you are about to eat, literally it means "I humbly receive"

 **Chikuso** * Is an expression of anger, like dammit, shit or fuck.


	14. Chapter 13 The Proposal

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.

Sorry about the delay. This is a Little bit longer tan the previous.

12 The proposal

The silence that followed was so dense it could be cut easily with a knife. Inuyasha waited impatiently, while Kagome seemed to be lost in meditation.

"What do you think? You don´t believe it´s a good idea?"

He finally dared to speak up, his voice soft, not wanting to startle her, even if he felt like shaking her out of her shell.

Finally, Kagome looked up into his eyes, her own clouded by tears.

"Why do you want to marry me?" Her voice was shaky, a reflection of the turmoil in her heart.

"Etto… I told you, I don´t want to dishonor you. If we keep this up, I can´t promise you I can keep myself under control."

Kagome smiled sadly, she had been waiting for a declaration of undying love before a proposal was due. It caught her by surprise and she wanted to be reassured before she said yes.

"Yes, but why me? I´ve been told there are many young ladies that would gladly take that place."

"But I don´t want anybody else. I just want you."

Inuyasha felt he was walking on thin ice and any sudden movement will end up with him sinking to the bottom of a frozen lake.

"Ok, I see." Kagome looked down for a moment and then to the flames dancing in the fireplace. "But why do you want me?"

"Oh… I think it is because I know you, I trust you. You are kind and brave. You are not afraid of me, you said so a few minutes ago. And you promised you would stay with me. Have you changed your mind during the last three years?"

He looked at her profile trying to decipher what was going on inside her head. He had rehearsed many possible scenarios during the last couple of hours, none of them included her turning him down. In that moment he felt he could beg all the kamis in heaven that she would accept him.

"No, I haven´t changed my mind. But you are forgetting about the most important reason to marry. What about our feelings?"

She turned again and they were now face to face.

Inuyasha felt his palms sweaty. _"Kuso. I would rather battle a thousand demons than confront Kagome eyes."_

"Feelings?" He mumbled and looked at their joined hands. "What about them? Don´t you think there is plenty of that between us?" He felt his face had turned a deep crimson color.

 _"What does she want me to say? That I love her? That I can´t imagine life without her? Damn wench should know I ain´t good with words."_

Kagome smiled at him. She put her free hand on his cheek.

"So much for a love declaration." She thought.

But it was enough for her. She knew him well and shouldn´t have expected anything different than the typical Inuyasha. He was giving her all she had ever dreamed of, what if he didn´t love her as much as she did? That he had chosen her and waited for her spoke volumes about his commitment to her. She was sure he cared for her deeply and that was enough, for the time being.

"Ok, then, let´s get married."

Moving her hand away from his cheek, she took it to her own face and cleaned a single tear drop that ran from her left eye.

"You mean it? Are you sure?" He asked while he felt as if something heavy was being lifted from his chest. He took a deep breath and smiled relieved. "You are not going to change your mind, are you?"

"No, baka. I won´t. But, how do we do it? What do we need to get married?"

"Etto, I´m not sure. I never thought I would ever get married." He said smiling shyly. "You don´t know anything about weddings?"

"Well, in my era there are many different ways of doing it. And there´s a lot of paperwork involved. There´s the traditional Shinto wedding and the modern wedding. In any of those, the groom gives the bride a diamond ring, they go to a temple with their family. The bride wears a white dress while the groom wears a black or gray suit. After the ceremony, there´s a meal for both their families and friends and after the bride and groom have their wedding night they go on a trip called a honeymoon."

While she talked about weddings, Kagome had closed the distance between them and rested her head on his shoulder. After letting go of her insecurities, she was feeling so peaceful and content she wanted to purr like a kitty.

"Ok, that is a lot to consider. I think we can get Sango to lend you her wedding dress. And we don´t have any family left, so there would only be our friends. I could hunt for a couple of boars to make a feast."

"What about Sesshomaru?" She asked him not sure of how things were between the two brothers.

"What about him? You are not thinking about inviting him to a human ceremony?"

"Well, he is your older brother after all."

"Keh, like he even cares about it. He visits the village often to check on Rin and that´s about all the contact we´ve had since you left. I wouldn´t call it a family bond exactly."

"I think you should ask him anyway. I would give anything to have my family by my side on such a special day. If all the family we have is Sesshomaru, then I would like him to be present, if he wants to."

"I wouldn't count on it. I think Miroku, Sango, and Kaede are much closer to us than the pompous bastard will ever be. Anyway, I´ll ask him, if you insist."

As the conversation unfolded, they had relaxed on the cushions, their hands entwined. Kagome head was on Inuyasha´s shoulder and he had leaned back, his legs outstretched in front of him. Inuyasha realized that for the first time since she had returned, he was able to hold her without fears or doubts and he was happy because of that.

"It´s time for me to leave. I don´t want to have the village talking about us. They will have a feast when word of the wedding spreads." He tried to get up but Kagome gentle hold on his hand pulled him back down.

"Just a few more minutes please, I wanted to talk to you about Shippou."

"Ok, what did the kit do now?"

"Nothing, you know he behaves himself when I am around. It´s just that, I thought that since there is plenty of space here… would you mind if he stayed with us? I mean, you don´t want to sleep here and he has no place of his own…"

"Keh, damned brat."

Inuyasha wasn´t happy with the idea. He didn´t want to share Kagome with anybody, least of all with a highly demanding kid. Whenever Shippou was around, Kagome would dote on him. Maybe it would change the way things were developing between them and he didn´t like the thought of it.

"I don´t know. I´ll have to think about it."

"Oh Inuyasha, please. He´s just a kid, and he is all alone in the world. I would like him to feel like we are his family, you know how much I love him."

While she was talking, Kagome had gotten closer to him. She was now sitting with both her legs crouched under her body, her hands together as if in prayer. Inuyasha couldn´t avert his eyes from her lovely face.

 _"Kami how I would have loved to have someone like her worrying about me being alone as a kid. Kagome would make an excellent mother someday."_

He was surprised with that turn in his thoughts, he had never before considered the idea of a family and here he was dreaming of Kagome holding a white-haired baby, smiling lovingly at it. This thought warmed his heart and made him want to hug her close to his body and never let go.

He moved his body in the cushions so that he could face her, one foot stretched and the other under his body. One of his hands cupped Kagome cheek while his thumb rubbed it the other hand surrounded her small waist bringing her so close her hands came to rest on his chest. He looked into her eyes and gave a sigh giving in to the need he felt to kiss her.

He drew the outline of her lower lip with his thumb, raising goosebumps on her flesh. His sensitive ears could hear perfectly the wild beat of her heart almost in synch with his own. Very slowly he pressed his lips to hers, not wanting to rush things up. He still felt very insecure when it came to physical contact. He had very little experience, so he had to rely on his instincts. It felt so good though, it would pay off learning some more.

Kagome was in a similar position, she had no other experience than the few kisses and petting they had shared. But she had much more information. She had been born in an era where sexual education was available in many forms.

She knew what was happening, and she wanted it just as much as he did.

The hands that had been pressed flat against Inuyasha chest started to move up and down. One hand wandered off to the back of his neck grabbing him firmly, deepening the Kiss, while the other went to the front of his suikan, looking for the opening. When she found it, she traced small circles on his chest, dragging the clothes apart as she did so.

Inuyasha could feel the soft touch of her hands and couldn't stop the grunt that escaped his lips. Once again, the fire in his loins was growing wild and he didn´t feel he could stop it, but he had to at least try.

"Kagome," He spoke in a low guttural voice. "I have no experience with this kind of situation."

Kagome looked into his eyes and saw they were clouded with passion, the purple marks on his cheeks were visible again, but he was so calmed she didn´t want to mention it. Instead, she followed his cue in the conversation.

"You mean you´ve never been engaged before?"

"No, I mean I have never been this intimate with a woman before, I don´t know what to do."

His confession made him feel uncomfortable and took her by surprise.

"Oh!" She slowly let out the air as the realization of what he just said hit her. "You mean you and Kikyo never… I mean, I know you were close, I just assumed you and her… you know."

"We just kissed a couple of times, and it was never this intense. I am just trying to do the right thing with you, I can´t mess things up, it is too important."

For some reason the thought of him being as inexperienced as herself made Kagome feel reassured. He had not shared a moment like this with anybody else, he was all hers. Nothing he had lived before would ever compare to what they would share from now on.

She would make sure of that.


	15. Chapter 14 Betrothed

All the characters of Inuyasha belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I only borrowed them for fun.

A bonus to thank yoou all for your support.

14 Betrothed

Kagome understood him better now. He was sailing uncharted waters and he was a little insecure, that was all. He probably felt honor bound to respect her, she knew him well and he was a highly honorable man. She should rely on his decisions and see where they would take them, after all, he had just proposed to her.

"Inuyasha, I feel so happy. We have to share this happiness with our friends."

She spoke softly and with every word she got closer and closer to his mouth until she finished her sentence and pressed her lips softly against his. Very slowly she rubbed her bottom lip against his until he opened his mouth and granted her access.

Inuyasha let out a sigh and run his hands up and down her back. He didn´t want to fight it, he gave in to her delicate touch. His hands on each side of her slender waist, he could almost close them around her, so petite and yet so curvy, her body seemed to be made for him, he thought. He dragged her from her cushion, still not breaking the kiss, and sat her on his lap. Again, he felt like flames were consuming him and he found Kagome body was the source of the heat.

While their tongues danced playfully against each other, one of Kagome hands decided to resume her previous path sneaking inside Inuyasha´s kosode, the tip of her fingers slowly drawing strange patterns on the left side of his neck.

Inuyasha could do nothing but grunt against her mouth, grazing his fangs and teeth over her full lips. Licking his way over the line of her jaw and down her neck, he nibbled and suck on her skin making her tremble and moan louder. Kagome arched her back to give his lips enough space to roam her skin, the hand that had been caressing Inuyasha´s neck found its way inside of his kosode, her palms tracing the hard plains of his pectorals, her fingertips causing shivers of pleasure to run up and down his spine.

He could feel his yokai blood roaring in his veins, trying to subdue his will. He took deep breaths and closed his eyes, concentrating on beating his wild side. He knew they should stop, but the pleasure brought by Kagome hands was beyond anything he had ever dreamed. Inuyasha ´s hands were not idle during his inner battle, he found the hem of her yukata and went under it, touching the skin of her back with his fingertips, very tenderly avoiding to scratch her with the deadly tips.

Kagome wondered how was it even possible that such powerful hands, capable of shredding enemies to pieces, could touch her so skillfully, breaking the little resistance she had and turning her to a pile of malleable putty. Yet, he claimed to have no experience. Kagome couldn´t imagine what it would be like when he gained more experience, she would very likely die a thoroughly pleasant death.

She felt his knuckles skimming over her rib cage until he reached the swelling of her breasts and stopped his caresses. She held her breath when she felt him cup the sensitive flesh at the same time that his lips stopped kissing her collarbone. She heard him take in a deep breath and heard his voice husky and low whispering against her ear.

"You are a witch Kagome. I try time and again to keep my hands to myself, then you just look at me and I lose all my willpower."

She lifted her hands and cupped his face in them, the jagged purple marks still visible and his eyes getting redder every second. In a few minutes, he may lose control over himself. She wanted to test his will, see how far they could get before he was gone.

"I don´t want you to hold back. We are engaged now, you are allowed to touch me."

She spoke in a ragged voice While the hand that had been in the back of his neck joined the other at his chest, parting the opening of his kosode and leaving the skin of his chest exposed to her greedy eyes.

"Me too." She continued. "I can also… touch you."

Inuyasha sighed very loudly

"Woman, you are killing me."

He swallowed hard and closed his eyes reveling in the touch of her delicate hands.

Kagome lowered her head and very tenderly kissed the skin that covered his heart. He almost jumped at the new sensation but steadied his breathing and let her continue the exploration of his chest, first with her fingertips, next her lips and her tongue. He stayed very quiet feeling himself grow impossible hard, like never before while Kagome lips traveled up to his neck, then back down his collarbone and a little to the side until she found his nipple. She ran her tongue up and down the hardened skin and bit him very softly eliciting low growls to escape his lips, making his chest vibrate at the same time.

Kagome smiled to herself, she never thought he would be so sensitive to her touch. It made her feel powerful and playful. Her hands continued to trace the way down his abdomen rejoicing when she felt he was having a hard time just breathing. She stopped suddenly when she found the knots that tied his hakama. She grabbed the ends with the intention of untying them when her hands were held by his trembling ones. She looked up and saw he was full yokai now, the big fangs, the red eyes, the purple marks and the thing that scared and seduced her the most, his deep hoarse voice.

No! Please, stop it, woman!"

He let go of her hands and got up with her back to her, while he tied the obi that kept his kosode and suikan in place, his breathing still irregular but slowly getting back to normal. He walked a few steps towards the door but stopped before sliding it.

"I´d better go to take a bath now." He said, his usual gruff tone indicating his voice wasn´t yet his normal self.

"All right. Let me go warm the water and you can bathe in a few minutes." She said running her hands through her hair, trying to compose herself.

"Don´t bother. I think I´ll go to the river and soak in cold water for a while." His voice was again back to normal as was his breathing, but he still didn't dare to turn around and let her see certain parts of him that weren´t completely calmed yet.

Kagome let out a chuckle.

"Yeah, I could use a cold bath too. But I think I´ll take another inside if we really want to stop it right now."  
Now it was his turn to snicker. He finally managed to get his body under control and face her.

"You want me to bring you water?"

"No, thank you. I still have plenty left after cooking and cleaning.

"Ok then. Goodnight."

"Good night Inuyasha."

She walked him to the door and by the time he closed it the marks had already disappeared.

He bent down and kissed the top of her head, then he turned around again and left. Kagome gave out a loud sigh and got up. She´d better got the fire going to heat the water again, she really needed a second bath to help her calm down her body. These close encounters with Inuyasha always left her exhausted, the frustration taking its toll on her body. She remembered the lonely nights in her bed at her mother´s home. She was not alone anymore, Inuyasha shared the same frustration that shook the very core of her being and they would conquer it together.

Kagome was confused. She had seen him turn into a full yokai many times and he was never this calmed. Could it mean that Inuyasha had mastered his yokai blood and he was in charge of his demon self? She would have to ask Miroku about the times he had changed when she was on the other side if there was any.

After making sure the fire was burning low, Kagome took the candle that had been lighting the room and went to bed. She was tired but happy and she was going to sleep an engaged woman for the first time. Tomorrow she should tell the news to everybody who would listen, there were many things to do, she should start planning her wedding as soon as possible. She imagined Inuyasha wearing a black kimono and herself in a traditional wedding dress and smiled. She fell asleep smiling, not five minutes after blowing the candle out.

Inuyasha went about his usual nightly routine patrolling the forest, he knew the branches and trees where he could perch himself up by heart, so it didn´t matter that his mind was far away tonight. Kagome had accepted him and soon they would be married, that was the only thing he could think of. When was the last time he had felt this happy? Come to think about it, never. He didn´t remember a happier time. Perhaps when he was a child before he could understand the world he had been born into. He had been content, but he didn´t remember being happy, there was always something missing. Back then it was his father. He remembered how he envied the other children who had both a father and a mother. His mother had done everything she could to fill all the gaps in his life, he realized that later, after she was dead and he was chased away from the place he had called home. After growing up alone, learning to fend for himself and trusting no one, he met Kikyo. She had given him some peace and solace in a world that was full of hatred for him. And he had been grateful, he had loved her sincerely.

But despite those feelings, he hadn´t been happy. He had felt some comfort and hoped the future would bring happiness to them both, but alas it hadn´t been possible. Kikyo died hating him and he was bound to a tree for fifty years, sleeping, dreaming only of her betrayal. Until Kagome showed up and released him. At the beginning of their relationship, he was still full of resentment and they bickered a lot. Little by little the girl changed him and he hadn´t even noticed. She became the light of his dark soul. By the time Kikyo was brought back to life he was torn by the guilt and his sense of duty while he never dared to acknowledge his feelings for Kagome. She on the other hand never faltered, she told him what she felt and remain by his side even when he turned her down, never breaking her promise.

She remained by his side until he was finally able to let his feelings show. And then destiny interfered and he lost the woman he loved again, only this time he had friends that he could rely on and a place where he belonged. He had made amends with his past and was even in better terms with his brother. All thanks to her. He had been waiting for her for three lonely years and now they were finally reunited. And she was still keeping her promise, they would be getting married soon. It was so much more than he deserved. He was going to make sure she would never regret it; her happiness was his only goal from now on.


	16. Chapter 15 Over the clouds

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

14\. Over the clouds

The next morning Kagome woke up with a huge smile on her face. She felt as if she had spent the night floating on a cloud, having slept blissfully the whole night, she woke up rested and happy. She still couldn't believe it, she was betrothed to Inuyasha. Just a couple of days ago she was leading a dull, sad life and now she had been granted her heart´s wishes, as if the Shikon jewel had finally listened to her.

Thinking of her family caused a shadow to cross her face. If she could tell her mother, how happy it would make her. She wanted to share her happiness, she couldn´t keep something this big to herself, she wanted to shout it from the rooftops.

She got up and dressed in her modern era dress, the only one she got apart from the one Sango lend her which she still had to sew before it could be worn comfortably. Sango was a little taller and broader than her, so the clothes she was given were a little big and long for her. She had also borrowed some needles and thread to fulfill the task. She wondered if she could get a sewing kit of her own. She was hoping to make good use of the sewing lessons during the last three years. She had taken cooking lessons as well. It seemed as if she had been preparing for this life even though she had no certainty of ever coming back to Inuyasha, she had never completely lost hope.

While she was combing her hair, she heard a familiar voice calling her.

"Oi, Kagome. Are you up yet?"

She smiled brightly and almost run to the front of the house.

"Inuyasha!" She shouted his name and clung to his neck. "Good morning." She crushed her lips against his and gave him several pecks.

The surprised hanyo grabbed her by her slender waist and returned the kisses.

"Watch it woman!" He was able to speak when she finally let his mouth free. "Good thing I have good reflexes or we would both end up on the floor."

He meant to scold her, but he was smiling, so it didn´t have the effect he was expecting.

"Looks like you slept well." He whispered nuzzling her hair. "And you smell so good."

"That´s what happens when you bathe twice in a day." She said with a smug grin on her face.

His hands were still around her waist and hers around his neck. If he wasn´t careful they would end up kissing again. And every time they kissed it got harder to break apart.

"Hey, I got you some plums and persimmons, and some honey too. What do you say we have breakfast? I´m starving.

"Ok then. I´ve already made some rice, and the kettle should be boiling by now. I put it on the fire some minutes ago."

Kagome turned to the kitchen and found the fruit on the table. She took it to the wood basin they used for a sink and poured some fresh water to wash it while Inuyasha got the tea ready. She took out the pickled vegetables and some mushrooms to eat with the rice, knowing how much Inuyasha loved them.

"Inuyasha, have you thought about Shippou?" She asked him.

"Yeah, I have. I think he can stay here. I´m going to leave the village for a few days and he can keep you company. But I don´t want him sleeping with you. He can sleep in the empty room. I´ll ask Kaede if she can lend him a futon while we get him a new one."

He spoke so fast that Kagome had a hard time processing all the information.

"Yay!" She jumped in her chair and smiled happily. "Wait. Did you just say you were leaving? Where are you going?"

"First, I´d like to talk to Kaede and Miroku about this wedding thing. And when we know for sure what we need, I should go see Totosai and Myoga to invite them, and Sesshomaru too. You still want them in the wedding?" He looked at her like he was hoping she had changed her mind.

"Oh, I had forgotten about the elders. Of course, I want them invited. They are family too."

He didn´t tell her right away, but there was an ulterior motive for visiting the old farts. He needed information about the changes he had been experiencing lately. He had never liked losing control and he needed to be himself when he was with Kagome.

His face was sporting his usual scowl while deciding whether to tell her or not of his real reasons until Kagome made a funny face that just brought a smile to his lips.

"Will you pass the honey please?" She asked him scrunching up her face.

"Sour plum, ha?

"Yeah, I think I better use these to make some umeboshi*. Would you like that?

"You know how to make that?

He was genuinely surprised and it showed in his face. The few times he had tasted Kagome cooking it wasn´t so elaborate, or that good either.

"You know, I did a lot of learning and practicing these last three years. Give me a chance and then you can tell me if I´m any good at cooking. – She said in an upset voice, her temper turning as sour as the plum.  
"Keh, you can do anything, I don´t doubt you for a second."  
"Thank you." She said visibly relaxing. "You know, I´ve been thinking since last night. I was wondering if you would mind hunting something big for dinner. I want to invite our friends over and tell them the news over dinner. Besides, Sango said she hasn´t seen the inside of the house. I´d like to show the house to our friends."

"And when are you planning to have that dinner party?" He asked while finishing his rice and putting the bowl down.

"Tonight, if it´s possible. What do you say?"

She looked at him trying her best to look innocent and charming.

"Tonight?" He looked surprised but he had known the answer before he even asked. "I suppose I can go hunting now and be back before noon. It will have to be pheasant or rabbit. Anything bigger I would have to travel farther away and by the time I´m back it will be too late to cook it."

"All right, finish your pickles then. After I clean up we can go let them know about dinner and then you can go hunting while I make some more rice, a soup and dessert."

"Wow, that´s a lot to do in just a few hours."

They finished their breakfast in silence and Kagome washed the bowls humming to herself. She was still humming while they walked the few yards that separated their house from Kaede´s. Inuyasha silently enjoyed her good mood and smiled all the time, after years of self-imposed lonely silence listening to her made his heart warm inside his chest.

They found Lady Kaede as she was about to leave for the shrine. She hadn´t expected to see them since she told Kagome they would start her training I a few days.

"Inuyasha, Kagome, good morning. How are you, children?"

"We´re fine baba." Inuyasha answered. "We are cooking tonight, so don´t make any plans."

"What he means is that we would like your company for dinner if you are free tonight." Kagome rephrased his words and smiled at the older woman.

"Keh!" He said and folded his arms hiding his hands on his sleeves.

"I´d love to visit your house. I´ve been waiting for an excuse to go pry on you Kagome, and finally get to see what Inuyasha has worked so hard to build.

"Will you bring Rin with you please? We would like her there too." Kagome looked down at her feet for a moment. "Can I ask you for some bamboo leaves Kaede oba-chan? We haven´t had a chance to go to the market yet."

"Sure child. I´ve got plenty, wait here."

The older miko went back inside and was back a couple of minutes later with a bunch of leaves she had covered in a piece of cloth.

"There you are. I have to go to my prayers now. We´ll see you tonight."

She turned away from them and walked in the direction of the stone stairs that led to the temple.

Inuyasha and Kagome walked to Miroku and Sango´s house next. They could hear the loud noises the children made and Kagome smiled to Inuyasha.

"Looks like the kids are already up." She said.

When they entered the little house, they heard the noise of tiny feet running to them.

"Inu! Inu!" The twins were happy to see Inuyasha and jumped into his arms without warning. He caught one in each arm trying to keep them away from his ears.

"Kagome! Shippou was there too and he jumped into Kagome´s arms like the twins had done with Inuyasha.

"Good morning Shippou-chan." She smiled sweetly at the kitsune and then to Miroku. "Good morning Miroku-sama."

"Good morning friends!" Miroku greeted them. "Come sit by the fire. We just finished our breakfast, but there is some rice and soup left if you want some."

"We already ate bouzo. Where´s Sango?" Inuyasha asked.

"She´s in the bedroom, changing the baby. She won´t be long I think."

They sat by the hearth Inuyasha with the twins in his lap who were trying to climb up his hair to reach the ears and Kagome with Shippou that spoke nonstop about his latest adventures.

"And when are going back to the mountains to continue your training?" Kagome asked the fox child.

"We still have a couple of weeks before the summer ends. Then I´ll be gone for the autumn and will be back when the snow comes."

"That´s good news Shippou, I wouldn´t want you to leave before…" She realized she needed to stop before she ruined the surprise.

"Before what?" The kit asked.

"Nothing runt. Are you staying with Miroku and Sango now?" Inuyasha asked him in his usual abrupt manner, trying not to sound too eager.

"Yes, he´s been with us since he came down the mountains." Miroku answered for the kitsune. "Our small house is blessedly crowded."  
"Then gather your things Shippou. It´s time you stop bothering them."

"Shippou-chan, would you like to stay with us until you go back to training? "Kagome couldn´t hide the happiness she felt, she was all smiles and hugs for the little yokai.

"Really? Can I ?" The kit looked at Inuyasha as if waiting for his approval.

"Keh!" He said and looked at Kagome who was smiling brightly. "There´s an empty room in the house and I want you there while Kagome is alone. But you must promise to obey her and take very good care of her while I´m gone."

Sango entered the room with baby Riusey in her arms. She sat next to Miroku and handed the infant to his father.

"I´m so glad to see you this morning, friends." She said smiling. "Are you going away Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha who had let that information slip his tongue looked at Kagome before answering.

"I´m not sure yet." He said averting his gaze from the inquisitive woman.

"We came to invite you to dinner tonight." Kagome cut in. "We would like to show our house to you and we can talk then. We should go now, there´s plenty to do before the night."

Kagome was already sitting with her feet on the genkan* to put her shoes on.

"Wait for me! I´ll get my things and I can go in a couple of minutes.

"No time kit. Better do it carefully so you don´t miss anything. You can bring it all tonight and stay there to sleep. We still have to get a futon for you."

"Oh, please Inuyasha, can´t I sleep with Kagome as I used to do?"  
The kid's eyes lit up for a moment.

"No, you will have your own room. You are too big to sleep with her now."

"He can take the futon he uses here, the baby won´t be needing it for a while yet." Sango said. "We will take it with us tonight. Anything else you need us to take?"

"No, thank you Sango-chan. We will take care of everything." Kagome said.

"Only if we leave right now. See you tonight."

Kagome made a little bow and turned to leave followed by Inuyasha. Once outside he stepped in front of her and kneeled down offering his back. They were back home in no time.

Inuyasha made sure Kagome had plenty of water and wood before leaving the house and heading to the forest in just a few leaps. He was smiling sheepishly, it was the first time they were going to have visitors and he wanted everything to be perfect, for Kagome and for himself.

This would be their family´s first visit to their new home.

umeboshi* pickled salted plums common in Japan.

genkan* the entryway to a house, traditional in Japan, where you are supposed to take off your shoes and leave them.


	17. Chapter 16 Guy s talk

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

Hello my dears, sorry for the long delay. I´ve been super busy lately. I hope this chapter can make up for it.

16 Guy´s talk

Leaping from tree top to tree top, Inuyasha made his way back home. Hands full with his prey, three fat big rabbits, and two smaller ones. The warm breeze on his face and the smell of the woods always helped him relax but on this particular day, he was too excited and he was enjoying it.

He arrived at the clearing where he had built his cottage with a huge satisfied grin on his face, a proud alfa male providing for his pack. He was going to clean the rabbits inside, an opportunity to show off in front of Kagome.

Once home, he crossed the threshold striding confidently and found this area clean and empty. He could smell Kagome in every corner of the small cabin and that made him smile. She had taken over the place, it was her home, where she belonged. Soon his smell would mix with hers and the place would become their home. The sounds of splashing water and the soft humming of her voice told him Kagome was bathing.

"This wench loves water more than frogs!"

Stepping closer to the hall, he took in a deep breath of the air, trying to identify her scent from the water and fragrant oils she was using. She smelled relaxed and happy.

He closed his eyes and pictured her, the long black tresses sticking to her back and shoulders, drops dripping down caressing her skin. If only he could get in the tub with her, his hands would grab firmly on her wet hair and he would drink the drops from her skin, his tongue following their path down her creamy skin, up to her lips, then he would kiss her until they couldn´t breathe anymore.

His eyes sprung open when he caught himself thinking of her in that way. His demon blood rising rapidly, fighting to get control of him, he took big gulps of air trying to get his breathing under control as well as certain parts of him that had stiffened as a result of his little daydreaming.

He turned to the kitchen and was about to start gutting his kill when he got another whiff of Kagome´s scent and he was about to lose it again. When he regained control, he took a moment to think and decided it would be better to gut them by the river and take them clean to her. It was less messy this way and she would be spared the sight of blood and guts, not to mention he would be concentrating on something different than Kagome´s scent.

Rabbits cleaned and offal removed, Inuyasha made a fire outside and started to set the carcass on roasting sticks, this way Kagome had the hearth to herself. He heard Shippou giggling and shouting something to the twins, they must be less than five minutes away. He went inside to let Kagome know and check if she was ready. Fortunately, she was, he found her combing her hair and looking fresh as a flower. Now that he could not only smell her but see her too, he felt the strong effect she had on him, his heart seemed to have grown two sizes and his chest would soon be unable to contain it while his groin clenched painfully reminding him he was in dire need of fresh air.

Inuyasha went back outside and sat by the fire, reflecting on the abundance of feelings he had been experiencing since Kagome came back into his life. He was anxious and happy and curious, all at the same time. Happy because he got to experience such intimacy with a woman, and not just any woman, the woman he loved and wanted, and she wanted him back. Then he was curious about how things would develop between them and he was anxious because of that. For the first time in many years, he missed his father, had he been alive Inuyasha could have asked him all the questions he had no answers to. Any other grown man in the village was probably more educated in sex than him, he felt lacking in this area and that was the main source of his anxiety.

He was brought out of his musings by the sounds of people approaching him, he got up and greeted their friends with a sour face and led them inside where Kagome had the tea ready. Now that they were all sitting in the tatami the house looked like it had shrunk. It was something he never thought he would see, his house, his woman, his friends; family.

The women chatted nonstop about furniture arrangement, dishes, cooking and a number of different topics he could hardly follow. After tea, Kagome offered to show Shippou to his room and then the rest of the house. Inuyasha said he was going to watch the rabbits on the fire and left the excited little crowd, but when he was walking through the door he heard Miroku calling him.

"Wait for me, my friend." The monk said smiling. "I need a rest from the ladies' conversation.

"Keh, you can come if you want, but I´m just roasting rabbits. Nothing exciting going on."

"Really? I would say that something has happened and it is bothering you, and I would bet it has something to do with your bitter expression." Miroku said sounding facetious.

Inuyasha stopped and looked at him from above his shoulder.

"You really can tell?"

"Of course I can, because you are my friend and I know you. You know you can trust me if there is anything you need to talk about…"

They reached the bonfire and Inuyasha turned to face him.

"Keh, like I could trust a hentai like you."

"Oh, my! It´s something that would be considered hentai then? What is it? Did you and Kagome sama finally…"

"Shut up you pervert!" Inuyasha almost shouted, his face suddenly red in embarrassment. "We haven´t done that yet." He immediately regretted his answer, he had given Miroku way too much information, he was sure the monk would torture him to no end.

"My friend, as I said, you can trust me. I know I tease you and Kagome sama a lot. However, if there is something important you would like to confide in me, I promise I wouldn´t use it against you."

Inuyasha looked him straight in the eye, his face still flushed. He seemed to be thinking hard about Miroku´s words. He looked at his own feet now, trying to hide from the monk´s gaze.

"I´m not sure I wanna talk to you about it… it´s kinda private."

"Well then who are you going to talk about it? Or is it something that you can keep to yourself?" Miroku put a hand under his own chin and seemed to be really thinking about it. "You know, if you really need a good listener, I´m here for you."

Inuyasha sighed and turned to the fire, he checked on the rabbits and was silent for a moment. He really had no one else, and he knew deep inside he could trust Miroku, the only thing that kept him from talking was his embarrassment. Finally, he decided to open up and see what good could come out their conversation.

"Alright monk, but keep in mind that if you ever tease me about it, or let any details of this conversation be known, I´ll beat your sorry ass to a pulp, I swear."

Miroku was a little afraid by the intensity in Inuyasha voice, this was going to be serious.

"I promise upon the life of my children, nobody will ever know about it."

The hanyo sighed and looked at his feet while he decided where to start.

"I´m going to marry Kagome." He said it without turning around. "That´s why we are having this dinner celebration, to let Y'all know about it."

"That´s wonderful news! You didn´t have to be so nervous about telling me that, my friend."

"That´s not why I´m nervous, it´s just that… well… you know I used to spend most of my time in the woods and… I wasn´t spying on people or anything… I just have a good ear and nobody seemed to notice me on the trees… anyway, I saw a lot of strange things and I heard a lot of stories… women… complaining about their husbands… and Sango… well… she looks so happy… nothing like the women I´ve heard… they said… they…"

"What are you talking about?" Miroku tried to be patient, but Inuyasha was making no sense. What was he trying to tell him?

Inuyasha sighed again, his hands were fists on either side of his body. He took a deep breath and continued.

"The women, they said they didn´t like to fulfill their marital duties, that it was disgusting."

"Oh, my dear friend! You are nervous because you don´t know what to do on your wedding night!"

Miroku smiled, he really wanted to laugh but was afraid it would upset Inuyasha.

"No, you moron, I know what I´m supposed to do, it´s just that… I have no experience… I´m afraid that Kagome would not enjoy it, like those women." He slowly turned around to face his friend, still red faced in embarrassment. "Sango seems happy to have you as a husband. I can tell, she is always smiling since you two got together."

"Ahhh, then you want my expert advice on the carnal affairs! Ha! Fear not, my friend, you came to the right person." Miroku signaled at some rocks a couple of feet away from the fire where they could sit and talk more comfortably.

"Just remember that if you ever open your mouth about this conversation I´ll make sure the next time you talk it will be without teeth in your mouth." Inuyasha repeated with a frown on his face.

"Easy there!" Miroku tried to placate him. He looked him in the eye and tried to sound as serious as possible. "I would never dare to betray your trust Inuyasha."

"Ok, now that we set that straight. What can I do to make Kagome happy to be my wife?"

"It´s very likely that you are worrying about nothing. A woman in love is looking forward to being intimate with her husband, I believe you have that in your favor." He looked at the hanyo´s face and saw him smile, loosening up a little. "Then, the first thing you should know is that you must put your lady´s wishes in the first place and your own in the second. Trust me, if you want a happy wife you must always satisfy her."

"And how do I satisfy her? I´m trying to do anything she wants, this wedding thing, inviting my bastard of a brother, I would do anything for her." Inuyasha's face had a look of genuine innocence. He didn´t get a clue of what Miroku was implying.

"I´m talking about intercourse Inuyasha, it´s a very serious matter." He saw the face of his friend turned red again as he looked back at his feet. "I literally mean that you have to outlast your woman and see that she is thoroughly satisfied before you can look for your own release. Now, the first time is going to hurt her, there can even be blood."

Inuyasha suddenly stood up in shock.

"Blood! No way, I´m not going to do it, I can´t hurt Kagome." He started pacing in front of Miroku. "I can´t do it."

"Inuyasha, that´s the way it´s been for all women everywhere. It can´t be helped. But, what you can do is help ease the pain. You have to make her want it so bad that she will be well lubricated."

"Lubricated?" Inuyasha face was one of pure horror, this sex thing seemed to be very complicated.

"Yes, my friend. If she is enjoying it and she is well lubricated it will not hurt that bad. Usually, men use their hands to help dilate the lady´s channel, but in your case, I would say that you better be extremely gentle, given that your hands are deadly weapons."

Inuyasha suddenly stopped the pacing. Her face felt like it was on fire. He thought he had been embarrassed before, but his face kept on getting redder and redder. He couldn´t be more embarrassed, ever.

"And the rest I let to your own creativity. All you need to do is be gentle and follow your instincts. He saw his friend went back to the fire and his shoulders were tense again.

"People in love can do a lot of experimenting. " Miroku continued. " And it´s all right. You will both learn from each other what things you enjoy and what you don´t. It will all come naturally, you´ll see."

"There is one more thing," Inuyasha said and turned around once again to look Miroku in the eyes. He paused and tried to speak up the main difficulty he did not find a solution to. "every time we kiss and the kissing becomes more… intense… I start to turn full youkai."

Miroku smiled at his friend and pat him on the shoulder. Inuyasha thought he hadn´t made it clear to Miroku, this was a serious matter.

"I seem to remember it was the other way around. You were turning full demon and it was Lady Kagome´s kiss what turned you back."

Inuyasha remembered that first kiss, how could he ever forget it? It was branded in his brain and he had relieved it countless times, whenever he felt miserable and worthless. Kagome had shown him how much he meant to her, she had kissed him while he was a wild beast and she had offered him all her tenderness and unconditional love. He would never forget that kiss as long as he lived.

Inuyasha felt himself loosening up, now that he thought about it, he had been worrying too much about this and probably the answer was with Kagome herself.

Miroku saw his friend was relaxing and smiling again and was satisfied he had managed to help calm him down.

"Are the rabbits done yet?" He asked and brought Inuyasha back from his reverie.

"Uh?" Inuyasha looked at him in confusion until the words made sense to him. "Yeah, the smaller ones. Maybe the kids can eat first while the bigger rabbits are still roasting."

After saying that he took the spikes that held the smaller rabbits and they headed back again for the house. Halfway down the road, Inuyasha turned to face his friend.

"Monk, don´t mention the wedding until Kagome brings up the subject. She probably is waiting for us to be there before announcing it."

"I will be silent as a tomb. And I will act surprised too when you two make the announcement."

"Ok then." Inuyasha turned and started walking again, his back turned to his friend. "And thank you, it was very helpful, talking to you I mean."

He didn't say anything else and Miroku didn´t answer, it wasn´t necessary. They understood each other and they had said all that was needed. Miroku knew his friend hardly ever thanked anyone and he was glad to help him, no thanks needed. 


	18. Chapter 17 The announcement

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

17 The announcement

Miroku followed Inuyasha as the latter entered the house and they were immediately surrounded by the muffled sound of laughter and shushing, but they couldn´t see anybody.

"Ladies, where are you?" The monk asked loud enough for the sound to carry around the small house.

"Back here Miroku sama!" They heard Kagome speak in a soft voice from the back rooms. Inuyasha went to the kitchen and placed the small rabbits in a platter Kagome had left on the table. He went to the bucket where they kept the water for cleaning and washed his hands. He saw that Miroku was still sitting in the doma after taking off his sandals.

"This way bouzu." He said and led the way to their bedroom, Kagome´s bedroom for the time being, but soon he will be sharing it with her. That very thought made his cheeks warm again.

 _"What´s wrong with me? I´m behaving like a little girl, I have to man up!"_ He thought to himself when he slid the shoji door open to let Miroku in.

The women were there, the baby sleeping peacefully on Kagome bed.

"Oh, here you are!" The monk said cheerfully. "Why are you hiding back here? And where are the kids?"

"We are not hiding dear," Sango spoke softly trying to not wake Riusey up. "I came here to nurse the baby, they just wanted to help me when he fell asleep, so we laid him down for a nap. Kagome was showing us their house, you have done a great job here Inuyasha."

"Sango is right," Lady Kaede added speaking as softly as the first woman. "You have done an incredible job here boy."  
Suddenly all eyes were on Inuyasha's face and everybody was expecting to hear all about the building of the house, but the hanyo was at a loss for words.

"Yes, my friend, I must say I´m very impressed with your house. I can see now why it took you so long to build it and why you been driving the carpenters crazy. The furniture is rather odd."

"Keh, I told you we could make a bigger house for you two when we were building yours. But you were in such a hurry to marry."

"Well, then it´s a good thing you had made good use of the last three years." Miroku added.

"We can still make some modifications to your place if you want." Inuyasha offered.

"Oh, I´d love to have bedrooms for the kids!" Sango spoke hopefully.

"See monk, your wife has some sense in her, unlike you." The hanyo didn´t miss the opportunity to tease his friend.

"Ok, we will do it then, since Inuyasha has volunteered his help. You better remember you offered Inuyasha, you will be chopping a lot of trees to make the timber we will be needing." Sango spoke while getting up. "But right now, it´s time for the kids to eat."

"The girls and Shippou went outside to play." Kagome said. "We have already settled Shippou in the other bedroom." She added smiling. "He is ecstatic about having a room all to himself."  
"Let´s call them all in then." Miroku said turning around to do so.

"But don´t shout, go out and ask them to come in. And to be quiet please, the baby has been sleeping for a little while now, it´s too soon to wake him up." Sango said softly as they walked through the door after Lady Kaede and Kagome.

The kids came in and ate quietly, they were hungry after all the anxiety of the day. Then it was the turn of the adults. They all enjoyed the food and when it was time for dessert, Kagome surprised them all with very tasty dango dumplings, a treat she had spent hours to make. She really had improved her cooking skills, they all congratulated her.

After they had finished, as the kids were playing near the fireplace and Kagome had cleaned the table, she decided it was the perfect time to tell their friends the news. She signaled Inuyasha to sit next to her so they could make the announcement together.

"Ok, now that we have eaten and since we are all here together, we have some news we´d like to share with you. You want to say it Inuyasha?"  
She looked at him and saw he felt rather uncomfortable with the attention. "I´d better do it myself." She took in a deep breath and suddenly felt nervous. She watched the faces of their friends and thought about her family. In moments like these, she wished they could be here with her to share her happiness. Her eyes became cloudy with sudden tears and her throat felt tight. Inuyasha was looking at her and saw the emotion in her eyes.

"I´ll do it." He said and all eyes turned to him again. "I asked Kagome to marry me and she said yes."  
Suddenly the silence was broken by a small cry and then everybody was shouting and congratulating them. Sango was the first to hug her friend and both women had tears in their eyes, Kaede had walked up to them and was hugging Inuyasha, much to his discomfort. The children were giving small cries of joy and laughing.  
"Kagome-sama you will look beautiful in a wedding gown." Rin said. "Just like Sango- sama did."

"Oh Kagome, you have to let me help you with the dress and the makeup." Sango offered. "I still have my wedding kimono, we can make some adjustments and it will be perfect for you. "

Kagome swallowed a small lump that had been forming in her throat and finally addressed Lady Kaede.

"Kaede obasan, do you think we will have any problems? I mean, where I came from mikos can be married, but I don´t know what is the rule here."

"Don´t worry my child. I´ll make sure nobody interferes. After all, you can´t find a powerful miko such as yourself so easily. Everybody should be glad that you chose to come to live here with Inuyasha."

Finally, relieved from the tension, Kagome smiled happily and looked directly into Inuyasha's eyes. She found the same relief in them, even though none of them had voiced their fear, it didn´t mean they hadn´t considered it.

"And when are you planning to have the wedding?" Lady Kaede asked.

"Well, we are not sure what we need and if you would be willing to perform the ceremony." Inuyasha said still afraid they would refuse because of him being a hanyo.

"I don´t see why not." The old lady answered. "Miroku and I will be happy to do it, isn´t that right Houshi-sama?"

"Of course we will, even if I´m not a Shinto priest, I don´t think we will have any problems. I will be honored to perform the ceremony with Kaede-sama." Miroku smiled reassuringly to the couple. "We got you covered with the ceremony, the dress for the lady and a kimono for you, my friend, you can borrow the one I used for our wedding. The only thing we have to check is who is going to attend the ceremony since neither of you have any parents around." He immediately regretted his last words seeing that Kagome looked rather sad when he mentioned their parents.

"I will walk with Kagome in the procession." Sango offered.

"Oh, I know, Sesshomaru -sama can walk with you, Inuyasha-sama." Rin volunteered and smiled innocently.

"Yeah, I´ll have to ask him." Inuyasha said surprising everybody. "Even if I think he´ll probably refuse. But then there´s Myoga and Totosai, they would probably agree to walk by my side in the procession."

"Ok, now we need a date, how long will it take to have everything ready?" Miroku asked.

I don´t know. I think I can go talk to all of them and be back in four or five days." Inuyasha said.

"We will have the kimonos ready in that time." Sango intervened.

"Then we will settle the date in eight days' time, so we have time to spare, just in case." Kaede said. "Or would you rather do it in six days when the next new moon is due?" She added.

"No." Kagome spoke in a firm voice. "I want to marry Inuyasha as I met him. Besides, we have to keep his human night a secret."

Inuyasha couldn´t help the warm smile that graced his lips. Kagome words meant the world to him, she wanted to marry him as he was, she was not changing him into anything he wasn´t, with all his faults and defects. He was one very lucky hanyo.

"All right, if everything´s decided you should bring out the sake Inuyasha. Or have you drunk all of what we were paid after we purified that ugly oni?"  
They all drunk and toasted the bride and groom to be until the twins started to complain they were tired, it was time to leave.  
Kagome took Shippou to his bedroom after saying goodbye to their guests and Inuyasha that had left with them. She was very tired so she went directly to bed after changing into her sleeping kosode. She fell asleep with a smile on her face, tired but happy.


	19. Chapter 18- Parting

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

Sorry to keep you waiting. Here´s a new chapter.

18 Parting

"Oi, Kgs! Shippou! Are you up yet? "Inuyasha shouted from the front door.

He had been up early but went to find fruit for Kagome again, and some flowers too. He felt silly about the flowers but he had enjoyed Kagome smile when she brought her flowers the last time, so he would just ignore his discomfort just to see that smile once more.

"Inuyasha!" Shippou shouted and flung himself over the hanyo´s shoulder. "Good morning! I slept like a log. My bedroom is so cozy and quiet I almost overslept and I can´t do that. I´m helping Miroku with his lessons, I have to be with him early."

"Ok, ok. Settle down, runt! Did you eat yet?" Inuyasha asked.

"No, I was waiting for Kgs, she´s already up, I heard her."

"I´m coming!" They heard Kgs´s voice coming from the bathroom.

"Oi, I´ll start breakfast then." Inuyasha let her know

He left the flowers on the table and went to the sink to wash the fruit and check on the water. There was still plenty from the night before, no need to go to the river yet. He started the fire and filled the kettle with water to make tea.

"Can I help?" Shippou asked him.

"Ok, go get the bowls from the cabinet, I see Kagome has already made soup. I´ll wash the fruit."

When Kagome entered the kitchen dressed in the yukata Sango had given her, four eyes turned to survey her.

"Wow, Kgs! You look beautiful!" Shippou said wide eyed just like Inuyasha, but the hanyo didn´t utter a word, he just looked at her and smiled.

"Good morning guys." She said smiling at them. "Inuyasha, you must start announcing yourself properly. This is your home, even if you are not living here yet. When you come home you must say **Tadaima modorimashita*** or just Tadaima."

Inuyasha was speechless, he didn´t remember ever being asked to announce himself, not even when his mother was still alive. He usually stayed inside the palace premises as a kid, so technically he never went out and therefore he never had to announce he was back home. And after that, he never had a home to return to. A smile slowly started to curve his lips. This was his home, his and Kgs´s. And Shippou´s too now.

"You too Shippou. And now that we are setting the rules since you two do not wear shoes I would like for you to clean your feet before entering the house. I will set some rags and a bucket of water for you to use. Is either that or you two start wearing shoes."

The smiled vanished from Yash's face, he really hated shoes and by the look on Shippou´s face, he wasn´t very fond of them either.

"Fine." He said almost growling and crossing his arms to further show his disgust. "And you kit? Or you prefer shoes?"

"No!" Shippou answered quickly. "I´ll do it Kgs, I promise."

After they had agreed to Kagome terms they ate breakfast together. Inuyasha silently enjoying the meal and the company of his small and growing family, something he had not been able to do since he was very young. They finished their meal and Shippou got up to leave when Inuyasha stopped him.

"Oi, before you take off, I want you to promise to take good care of Kagome while I´m gone. I´m leaving in a while and I´ll be back in four or five days. You will be the man of the house, but you must obey Kagome too. You think you can do it?"

"Yes! I swear I´ll take good care of Kgs, don´t worry Inuyasha. I have to go now."

And he left almost running. Inuyasha was glad to finally be alone with Kgs. He wasn´t happy to leave her for so long, but he knew it would be faster if he went alone. And he didn´t want any gossip about the two of them traveling together alone. He wanted to start his new life with her in a respectable way.

However, he was dying to kiss her goodbye, he couldn´t bear to leave her behind without a proper welfare.

"Are you going to be all right?" He asked her, extending both his hands to grab a hold of hers.

"Yes, you don´t have to worry about me. I have a lot to do. Sango and I are going to fix the wedding dress and arrange a couple of things for the wedding. She also promised to help me start the vegetable garden. Plus, I have to go see Jinenji about my training with the herbs. See? I´ll be very busy and I´ll have company too. I´ll hardly notice you´ll be gone." She said smiling softly and leaning closer so he could wrap his arms around her while she rested her cheek on his chest.

"I will notice you are not with me." He spoke in a low husky voice near her ear. "And I will be worrying about you the whole time. I´m afraid the moment I´m gone you will vanish again. I fear that will happen every time we part, whenever I have you out of my sight. In fact, I always fear that the next time I´ll try to find you I´ll realize I have been dreaming the whole time and you were never here in the first place."

He felt her small hands surrounding his waist as she pulled herself even closer to him. She let out a sigh as he breathed in the smell of her hair, trying to make an imprint of her in his memories. He felt her standing on her toes as she planted little pecks in the skin of his neck, where his suikan left it uncovered. He broke apart just enough to look down at her just when she turned her gaze upwards to find his.

"I won´t go anywhere, you don´t have to worry. I won´t even go near the well." She said in all earnest. The last thing she wanted was to leave him, even when she missed her family terribly. "I belong here, with you. I´m not leaving."

She could hardly finish her statement when his mouth fell over hers kissing her desperately. He didn´t tease her lips this time like he was in a hurry to taste her. His tongue frantically searching her mouth, inciting her tongue to come out and play.

He groaned deeply in his throat when he felt her response to his kiss, her hands leaving his waist to latch themselves in his mane, bringing him closer to her. It seemed she couldn´t be close enough to him, the space between their bodies became inexistent, her breasts were flat against his muscular chest, her thighs parted to accommodate his in between. Moans and whispers were the only sound that could be heard in their home. Suddenly, a low snarl was audible too and Kagome broke the kiss to sneak a peek at his face. Once again, the markings of his youkai had made their appearance.

"Inuyasha…" She whispered softly against his neck. "Are you all right?"

"It´s happened again, hasn´t it?" He said.

"Yes, but you are still you. I mean, you haven´t blacked out, you can talk to me and listen when I speak."

She reached up a hand and stroked his cheek, her fingers following the purple lines.

Inuyasha reached her hand and removed it from her face. He kissed her fingertips and moved their joined hands down.

"I know, it´s the strangest thing. I am completely conscious and I can feel my body change, but I still feel like the same person." He took a step back, his hands still holding hers. "I believe it has to do with the kissing." He said flushing lightly. "Is happening every time we kiss."

"We have to find out how to stop it, we will be married soon and I want to kiss you on our wedding night." Kagome said with concern in her eyes.

Now his slight flushed turned into a completely red face.

"I know. I talked to Miroku yesterday and…"

"You told him?"

"Yes, I needed someone to talk and he promised not to tease. Anyway, he said something that eased my worries a little."

"What did he say?" Kagome was curious now.

"He said that it was you who kept me from turning full youkai, remember? Behind the mirror?"

She nodded her head and smiled at the memory.

"Our first kiss." She said still smiling.

"Well, I believe now that I don´t have to worry about my youkai self around you since you are the only one who was ever able to subdue it."

"Oh, that´s true. We shouldn´t worry so much then. Just find out why it is happening and we will get around it together, right?"

"Right. Now, it´s time for me to leave if I want to get back soon."

"Wait. I prepared some food for your journey."

Kagome went to the kitchen and opened one of the cabinets. She took out a piece of cloth and started getting the food, wrapped in bamboo leaves, in a small pile in the center of the cloth. Then she wrapped the cloth and made a firm knot before handling it to Inuyasha.

"There are some rice balls, dried meat, and smoked fish. It will last for at least two days if you are not that hungry."

He took the package and smiled at her thoughtfulness. She was too good to him.

"Thank you." He said a little embarrassed. He had never been good at politeness, but she brought out the best in him. "See you soon." He kissed her on the forehead and turned around leaving a tear-eyed Kagome behind him.

"Be safe!" She shouted to his back as she watched him disappear in the thickness of the forest.

 **Tadaima modorimashita** */ **Tadaima** : A Japanese expression used to announce you have just came home. The answer to Tadaima is Okaerinasai, or just Okaeri, meaning welcome home.


	20. Chapter 19- Aniki

19 Aniki

Again, sorry for the delay. My laptop is giving me a hard time. Hope you like this one.

The sun was already setting over the valley and the colors of twilight were reflected in the peaceful waters of the lake. A light breeze was blowing, ruffling up the leaves in the forest at the foot of the mountain, the coolness in the air foretelling of the approaching cold season.

Standing in the terrace of his palace, Lord Sesshomaru let his eyes wander over his domains. The quiet of the scenery always gave the great **daiyoukai** * the necessary frame of mind to deal with the issues at hand.

He had settled in this palace after Naraku´s defeat. The **daimyo** * that had built it had been slaughtered with his army, leaving hundreds of widows, children and elders unprotected. The buildings had not suffered considerable damage and it was conveniently located in the center of the western lands. There was another reason why he had chosen this castle; he was closer to Rin down here, should any emergency occur. On top of that, he could avoid living with his mother in the palace of the west, not that his mother wanted him anywhere around her anyway. This was a good place to live.

Ruling the lands of the west was a great responsibility, his subjects were numerous and of very different backgrounds. It was up to him to find a solution to one particular problem without jeopardizing the lives and livelihood of his other subjects, human, youkai and even hanyos. And right now, the problem had to do with the **uwabami** ***** , the giant snake clan, and **omukade** ***** , the giant centipede youkai.

Many years before his father had reached an understanding with the leaders of both tribes to divide the lands to the east of the lake between the snakes and the centipedes that inhabited it. Being the omukade indigenous to the region it was their right to accept the snake´s occupation above the land while they ruled underneath.

For centuries, the agreement had been respected by both sides. Until recently, when the snake population had doubled and many started to occupy the caves that where connected to the tunnels built by the omukade. Many attacks to the centipedes ensued, in an attempt to send them away from the caves. Now, neither side wanted to back down, the situation had escalated and Sesshomaru found himself in the middle of a war that could easily spread all through the western lands. And to top it all, Hitomaru, leader of the snake clan, had challenged Toyotomi, leader of the centipedes, to a battle in which the winning survivors would decide the fate of the loser.

Sesshomaru would happily kill off the bothersome pair and put an end to the conflict. However, he knew if he did he would be risking a revolution and this two clans were a force to be reckoned. He had forbidden such confrontations but feared what might happen if the clashing youkais didn´t settle their feud anytime soon.

He was still weighing the possible solutions to the matter when a very agitated toad-like figure barged in the terrace.

"Sesshomaru-sama! Sesshomaru -sama!"

The daiyoukai didn´t turn around, but his eyes shot him a stern side way glance.

"Jaken, how do you dare disturb me when I told you to leave me alone!"

"I´m sorry my Lord, but it´s Inuyasha…"

The scowl in Sesshomaru´s forehead became an angry one.

"And what did I tell you about mentioning that name in my presence?"

The little imp started sweating, not sure how to break the news to his master without suffering his rage when he finally heard it.

"My Lord, I´m so terrible sorry, but Inuyasha…"

He didn´t have the opportunity to deliver the news as the aforementioned hanyo appeared by his side, coming to stand a few steps to the right of his brother.

"Oi, **aniki** ***** , you found yourself a nice palace"

For a second, Jaken feared that his Lord would turn into his true demon form and start a battle to death against his younger brother. He was surprised to see that Sesshomaru schooled his features and turned to Inuyasha with a mask of coolness instead.

" **Otouto** *, you finally decided to pay your respects to your older brother. It was long overdue"

Inuyasha just smirked and looked down lo the valley and lake beyond.

"Keh! Like hell I am!"

"Then what is the purpose of your visit?"

Sesshomaru was suddenly assaulted by horrible thoughts of Rin being hurt or ill or in need of him. He took a deep breath and tried to remain calm and collected while he waited for his half-brother to explain the reasons of his sudden appearance.

"I´d be happy to stay away from you for a hundred years, I only came cuz Kagome asked me. "

"Kagome? I take it your miko is back then."

Sesshomaru was relieved to hear that Rin had nothing to do with Inuyasha´s visit, and a little intrigued as to what Kagome wanted from him. "And what is that she wants from this Sesshomaru?"

Inuyasha turned to face him, a sense of pride filling him as he searched for an answer.

"We are getting married, we´re having one of those fancy human ceremonies and Kagome thinks that you should be present."

"This Sesshomaru? Attending a human ceremony?" Sesshomaru´s eyebrows where high in his forehead explicitly showing how surprised he was. He could hear Jaken was trying to suppress a giggle, this was rather amusing. "And you agreed to this?"

"Yeah, if that´s what Kagome wants…" Inuyasha said smiling softly at the thought of making Kagome happy. This wasn´t so bad, he could stand his conceited older brother and much more, just for her.

"You are not even wedded yet and she has already turned you into an obedient dog." Sesshomaru humorless smiled at him and Inuyasha felt his mood changing rather abruptly.

This time Jaken failed miserably at keeping a straight face and his laughter could be heard by both brothers who simultaneously turned and growled at him, ending his amusement right there.

"Just answer so I can go, you coming or not?" Inuyasha said in an angry tone.

"You really believe this Sesshomaru would stoop as low as you have? I don´t have any wishes to mingle with your worthless kind."

"Rin will be there" Inuyasha said hoping to strike a nerve. Sesshomaru only frowned and Inuyasha took this as his cue to leave.

He turned and took a couple of steps towards the door.

"I´ll tell Kagome you said high" He didn´t know why, but he felt he should spare Kagome the details of their interview.

"Wait! I haven´t answered you yet."

Sesshomaru´s voice rose booming through the terrace and over the valley. Inuyasha almost growled in response, but still managed to appear undisturbed.

"What´s your answer?" He asked Sesshomaru without turning.

"Not so fast little brother, first I need your help with a matter that has become quite inconvenient. If you agree to help me, I will consider attending your wedding to the miko."

Inuyasha took a moment to consider his brother´s words. What could be so annoying to Lord Sesshomaru that he even considered asking him for help? His curiosity had been awakened.

"Talk" he said, still facing the door that connected the terrace to the palace.

"There have been some disturbances between some of the youkai clans that I oversee. I could deal with it myself, but I ´m afraid I would end up starting a revolution. It has just occurred to me that you can be of assistance in this little dispute."

Inuyasha was suddenly speechless. He had heard the rumors of an upcoming war between the snakes and the centipedes, he was sure Sesshomaru was talking about them when he mentioned some youkai clans. He knew the snakes were mean creatures and he didn´t want to get mixed up in their feud against the centipedes.

"And what´s in it for me? I´ll be risking my life just so you may come to my wedding?"

"You insolent bastard! This is your father´s legacy you are talking about. You should be proud this Sesshomaru offered you to take your place in your father´s affairs!"

Rage was tainting his older brother´s eyes red, Inuyasha was certain if he remained there defying Sesshomaru, it would not end well. The excitement of a possible battle was alluring, the thought of helping his brother was not. All in all, he´d rather get to his wedding in one piece. He had fought youkais his whole life, he missed the action, but he preferred the excitement that Kagome´s warm body could provide over anything else in this world.

"You know what? I may be Kagome´s trained dog, but I ain´t yours. If you wanna come to the wedding or not, fine by me. Do whatever the hell you want, but I won´t be risking my hide to help your sorry ass. Good bye"

And with that he left a gapping green imp and an apparently stoic daiyoukai standing in the terrace, looking at his back, while he made his way to the forest shrouded in twilight.

 **Daiyoukai** : great youkai

 **Daimyo:** Feudal lord

 **Aniki:** Japanese slang for older brother (Onii-san/ Nii-san)

 **Otouto** : younger brother.

You can check out the info on theese youkais on the links below:

 **/oomukade/**

 **/uwabami/**


	21. Chapter 20 - The elders

Disclaimer: All the charachters are the property of the very talented Rumiko Takahashi, I own nothing.

Hello again. It´s official now, I´ve lost all my information. I´ll have to rewrite everything from my memory if I can get it to work. So please forgive me if the updates are taking longer tan they used to.

20- The elders

"This metal is too soft, I can´t work with this"

Totosai´s voice traveled from the back of the skeleton cave to the little furry ears swiveling on top of the hanyou´s head.

"You´ll have to work with that. That and the rock I got from the kongou souha," Inuyasha said turning away from Myoga to face the swordsmith.

"Inuyasha-sama, pay attention, please! I need more information than what you´ve given me. Now, what were you doing the moment these transformations took place?"

Inuyasha´s irritation was growing by the second. It didn´t help the fact that he was tired and hungry because he had wasted no time to eat or rest since he left Sesshomaru´s palace until he reached the volcano that housed Totosai´s dwelling. He wanted to finish his errands and go back home to Kagome, feeling uneasy just being apart from her. And having to retell his story to the elderly youkais was adding to his discomfort.

"That´s none of your business, old flea."

"I need to know all the details master! It´s not like we have a library full of scrolls studying hanyou´s behaviour. The smallest factor can be of relevance."

The small flea youkai was bouncing up and down on his master shoulder trying to catch his attention.

The hanyou growled low, his chest vibrating while trying to suppress the sound but failing.

"Is it possible that your demon side feels threatened by Kagome-sama?"

The flea stopped bouncing and seemed to be deep in thought. Either he didn´t hear the menacing sound or just decided to ignore it which made Inuyasha´s frustration reach higher levels. Hooking the tip of one of his deadly talons through the front of the tiny youkai´s kimono, Inuyasha lifted Myoga until he was up to his eye level.

"Kagome´s not my enemy!" The half-demon said through greeted teeth.

"I don´t mean it like that, Inuyasha-sama. I was thinking that she´s a powerful Miko and may be your youkai self feels her power and reacts to it."

Inuyasha´s frown dissolved almost instantly. That theory was not far fetched. He let Myoga down and sat down crossing his arms inside the sleeves of his suikan.

"Inuyasha-sama, I´d like to know what you and Kagome were doing on these instances. Were you two arguing?

This conversation was getting way too uncomfortable for his liking. Inuyasha thought about lying but in the end decided against it. If he wanted his elder´s advice he´d better be honest about his problem.

"We were kissing, ok?." He finally admitted looking down to hide the red flush that covered his cheeks.

"Oh!" Myoga said fighting hard to stifle a giggle. "It makes sense."

"How does it make sense?" Inuyasha inquired.

"Well, you are part inu youkai, and inus have the need to be the alphas of their packs. Your demon blood must be trying to subdue her."

"Keh!." Inuyasha´s baffled expression was impossible to hide.

 _"It would make more sense if we were arguing. Kagome never backs down from a fight, she always gives as good as she gets."_ He thought to himself. Then his expression changed to one of deep concentration as a new thought dawned on him. Kagome was also very passionate during their intimate moments. The same fierce stubborn ardor that made her stand up for what she believed in was also present when they made out. No wonder his demon blood felt threatened, she could burn him alive with her inner fire, his little miko was hotter than hell. Myoga was right, it made sense.

 _"Wait a moment! Myoga can´t possibly know how she is when we are alone. Was he teasing me?"_ He kept thinking. He shot the small youkai a sideway glance full of suspicion.

"Oi, jiji. Is there any proof of that?" He asked out loud. "Or you just made it up?"

"You could try and prove my theory my lord, yu just have to exert your dominance over your lady. If you don´t turn into a demon, then we are right."

"But what if you´re wrong?"

"Then we will have to think of something else. I have nothing else at this moment."

"There, I just finished it." Totosai voice interrupted their conversation as his large hand displayed the small product of his work for Inuyasha´s evaluation. "Is this what you had in mind?"

"It´s better than I expected." The hanyo answered bluntly. before rising to his feet. "I´m leaving now, can I count on you coming to the ceremony?" He asked without turning back.

"Sure thing." Said Totosai scratching his head.

"We wouldn´t miss it, my lord." Answered Myoga.

The second the red dot left the entrance of the cave and disappeared into the distance, Totosai turned to Myoga and asked still scratching his head.

"What ceremony is that?"

"You´re turning senile, my friend." The flea answered with a smile.


	22. Chapter 21 - The elders - Part Two

So, now that I´ve lost everything I had written for the last few chapters, I started again, trying to remember what I had planned for our beloved couple. The thing is that I left out a couple of details that should have been a part of the previous chapter. So, I had to write the second part of the last chapter before we can move on to the next one, where the smutt intensifies a bit.

The forest was too quiet, he noticed as he sped under cover of the canopy. Even though it was almost winter, the sun proved to be hotter than he had expected, forcing him off the tree tops. He was positive he had chased all the fauna away from his path due to the thunderous noises his movements spawned. He didn´t dwell on that fact, the animals will get over it, his priority being speed rather than fineness, Inuyasha wanted to get home as soon as possible.

He got to a small river and stopped for a moment to drink some water, he hadn´t noticed he was parched. He was splashing some cool water on his flushed faced when he heard the cawing of a bird standing out against the silent looked up and saw the little flea youkai just in time to prevent him from falling in the river.

"Inuyasha-sama"

"Myoga? What are you doing here?" Inuyasha asked still shocked to find out he was being followed and hadn´t noticed so far.

"Well, as you left so suddenly, I didn´t have time to tell you other ideas that came to my mind regarding your...eh... issue"

Once again, the hanyo had trouble holding back a growl. He was considering throwing the old fart into the current and keep moving forward but instead, he took a deep breath and settled Myoga on his shoulder and moved away from the shore and under the shade of a huge oak.

"What is it? Just spit it out!"

"Aren´t you going to stop for a meal? I can help you catch a nice rabbit or some fish maybe?" The hungry flea pleaded him.

"I ain´t stopping. I´ll eat when I get home"

Inuyasha sat on the grass, crossing his legs and folding his arms into the sleeves of his suikan while he frowned at the flea youkai.

" Oh! I left before Totosai finished cooking, my stomach kept complaining while I rushed after you, master."

The half demon reached inside the folds of his fire rat remembering the last remains of dry meat Kagome had packed for him.

"There, you can munch on that."

"Thank you so much, master! Your generosity warms my heart!" The flea demon spoke while unwrapping the treat the hanyo handed him.

"Now talk! What new ideas came to your mind?" Inuyasha said mimicking the small demon's words.

"I was thinking that meditation can help you relax when you feel that you are losing control of your demon blood."

Myoga stopped talking to stuff his mouth with the smoked meat and went on while he was still chewing.

"Meditation? That´s your big idea?"

"You must be very careful now." Myoga stopped to swallow and continued. "With your youkai self so close to the surface, it´s very likely that any little affront can cause you to turn full demon."

The flea demon kept eating contentedly while his master frowned at him.

"And?" Inuyasha asked trying hard not to display his growing annoyance.

"That´s it." The elderly youkai answered swallowing the last piece of meat. For such a small demon, he sure ate like a monster.

Inuyasha stood up angrily, grabbing the old flea by the front of his kimono with two fingers and lift it to reach his eye´s level.

"You made me stop just to tell me that?" He growled in the old flea´s face. "Did you listen to anything I said before? I didn´t lose control! I didn´t even notice I was turning!"

Inuyasha let him fall and turned away, sprinting in the direction of the village.

"Inuyasha -sama!" Myoga shouted after him. "Remember to keep calm!"

The hanyo re started his leaping, almost flying, pace ignoring the creature shouting at his back. He had wasted enough time. If he kept his speed at its maximum he could still make it home in time to have dinner with Kagome.


	23. Chapter 22 - Hands on

22- Hand son

Hello again, I´m back despite hurricanes and floods. This part was a little hard to rewrite, so again I broke it up into two pieces. I´m sorry it´s taking so long but life happens. I hope you like this one.

Warning: adult content, if it makes you uncomfortable, please skip it.

Disclaimer: I don´t own anything yet, all the characters were created by Rumiko Takahashi.

Kagome let out a contented sigh as she sank her shoulders below the surface of the lukewarm water. She knew that enjoying a bath in this era was a luxury few people could afford.

She didn´t quite understand the working of the pipes and drains, she was just thankful that Inuyasha had remembered how much she enjoyed relaxing while soaking in hot water.

These last few days had been a hectic blur and she was glad she could finish the day in such way. She never thought that preparing a wedding would be so exhausting. And she had added to the stress because she wanted to finish it all before Inuyasha came back. Tomorrow he would be home in time to avoid the new moon with her so she didn´t want to have anything left to do other than keeping him company. With that purpose in mind, she had been working her fingers to the bone, sewing with Sango, cooking with Kaede, gathering flowers and fruits with Shippo, anything that could be done in advance was being done.

Shippo had been so helpful too, taking part in the house chores, helping with the wedding plans, and helping her with her miko training. Now that he had gone to the taiji-ya village to look for Kohaku Kagome was missing him terribly.

Kagome sighed again and got out of the tub. The water was still warm, but she had left some soup on the fire and wanted to check on it. She was almost finished drying her hair when she heard the front door sliding and the voice of her hanyo saying "Tadaima".

Inuyasha closed the door after announcing his arrival, he hung Tessaiga on its designated hook by the door and wiped his feet with the cloth Kagome had left there. He was immediately surrounded by her smell and he noticed right away the calming effect it had on him. He inhaled deeply and closed his eyes to relish in her essence. A few days away from her and he had craved her scent like a drunken would miss sake.

He heard the sound of bare feet and turned around just in time to see Kagome running towards him, he barely had any time to open his eyes and stretch his arms to welcome her before she was crushed against his chest.

"Oi, I told you to watch it. You could send us both down on our asses." His voice was like music to her ears, the meaning of the words was unimportant, as long as he kept talking softly and smiling down at her.

"I´m so happy you´re back" Kagome held him so close to her that it was hard to even speak, the wet black tresses dripping all over his suikan, her face buried in the crook of his neck. She wasted no time and started spreading soft kisses on his face, lips, and neck until he shoved her away from him.

"Stop it please," he begged her noticing she was only wearing the thin yukata which was also getting wet, and translucid, from her dripping hair. "I´m all dirty woman, probably stinking. Let me get a bath first."

"Ok then. I left plenty of hot water. You can bathe now while I prepare dinner."

She was turning towards the kitchen when she remembered something else and turned again to face him.

"I can wash your fire rat in the meantime."

Inuyasha blushed a deep shade of red. He knew his clothes took little to no time to dry but, did she mean he should stay naked until then?

She seemed to realize just then what she had implied and matched his face with a furious blush.

"I have your kimono ready, the one Miroku lent you... for the wedding... you can wear that, the hakama and kosode at least."

She spoke in a rush until she was out of air and started her way to the bedroom where she had left the kimono. She came out with the clean outfit and handed it over to Inuyasha who had followed her and was standing in the hallway.

"Leave the dirty clothes out of the door and I´ll come in a few minutes to collect them."

She left for the kitchen and tried to concentrate on cooking if the butterflies in her stomach would allow her and the splashing sounds coming from the bathroom didn´t distract her.

Kagome had just hung the laundry from the beams near the hearth when Inuyasha finally joined her wearing the black hakama and white kosode, his long silver hair almost dry and she suspected he had dried himself doggy style.

 _"He´s probably made a mess of the bathroom."_ She thought to herself and smiled.

"Where´s the pest?" Inuyasha asked remembering Shippo was supposed to be looking after Kagome. He sat down as he received a bowl of steaming soup from his fiancée.

"He´s gone to invite Kohaku to the wedding. Then they are both taking Kirara and go look for Hachi. They have to ask him to bring the sake for the celebration, they should be back in time for the wedding."

They ate in silence after that, partly because Inuyasha was stuffing his face with the food she had prepared, and partly because she felt too happy to talk.

After dinner, they sat on the cushions near the fireplace. Inuyasha stretched his legs in front of him, one arm around Kagome´s waist while her head rested comfortably on his left shoulder. Now that they were both relaxing, Kagome urged Inuyasha to tell her all about his little expedition.

"How did it go with your brother?"

"Argh, don´t even remind me. The bastard asked me to work for him in exchange for his divine presence in our wedding."

"Really? What did he want you to do?" Kagome was curious about their relationship. It seemed nothing had changed during her absence between these two.

"He didn´t say what it was, just that it was time for me to take an interest in our father´s affairs or something like that. I suspect he was looking for an escape goat or someone to blame if he can´t prevent a war between youkai clans. Whatever it was, I said I wasn´t interested"

"That´s too bad, it was a good opportunity to clean the air between you two." Kagome sighed and stole a look at his profile. "And what about Myoga and Totosai? Are they coming?"

"Keh! Like they would miss the chance to eat and drink for free. They´ll come, trust me." Inuyasha looked into the fire and rested his head on the wooden wall behind him, he didn´t dare look into her eyes in case he lost his courage. " Myoga had some insight into my transformations. I came up with a theory we need to prove."

"What is it?" Kagome almost jumped at his words, she reached her hand to cup his cheek, forcing him to make eye contact.

"He said that my youkai blood was probably defending me against your reiki since you´re such a powerful miko."

Kagome almost snorted. "You don´t have to make fun of me. What did he really say?"

"I´m serious. He said your energy might be challenging mine, that we could try meditating to channel our energies but I have another idea." Inuyasha felt his cheeks warming more and more with every word. "You think you can control your reiki?"

Kagome seemed to be lost in her thoughts for a few seconds.

"Well, to be honest, I wasn´t focusing on my energy when we were making out. Myoga may be right."

"You wanna try again?" He held his breath waiting for her answer, afraid she might refuse and terrified if she agreed.

"Making out?" Kagome was a little surprised at his sudden suggestion. She was more than happy to oblige but didn´t want to sound too eager. "Sure, I guess."

"Okay." He said and took a deep breath to steady his heartbeat. " But we have to set some rules. If you notice me turning, we stop right there. We aren´t going all the way, we need to decide when it´s proven and then stop."

"So, we just get to the point where we have no doubts and then we stop?" Kagome had some doubts, it didn´t seem conceivable to try and stop in the middle and then be left frustrated. It had happened before and neither of them had enjoyed it. The alternative being to be left frustrated without even trying, she thought that was even worst.

Kagome looked into his eyes and nodded softly knowing he was waiting for her approval before making any move. "I agree, I´m sure I can keep my reiki under control."

Inuyasha nodded too. He was freaking out now that it was about to happen, but they had to do it if they wanted to have a normal life as a married couple. And he wanted that more than anything in the world.

He took a deep breath and bent his head to capture Kagome´s lips, the sweet taste taking him into oblivion in a few seconds, all his worries vanished and he was left only with the burning sensation of her body cuddling next to him.

His arms surrounding her lithe body moving her to his lap, their lips never disconnecting. He felt Kagome surrendering to him, her mouth opening to let his tongue enter. She was melting against him, their breathing becoming more erratic with every taste of each other's mouth. Inuyasha heard whimpering noises escaping from Kagome´s lips as she slid her palms over his shoulders, one anchored firmly there while the other tangled his mane at the back of his head. She closed her eyes and checked her reiki, trying to keep it unaltered while her body succumbed to Inuyasha´s sweet attack on her senses.

Inuyasha´s lips left the girl´s mouth and wandered down her neck nibbling and licking his way down the smooth skin, his hot breath over the wet trail raising goosebumps and making her shudder. His demon blood must be feeling rather good, he thought, he could feel it soaring in his veins and couldn´t help but growl against the pulse at the base of her neck.

Kagome felt the vibration and heard the wild noise. Afraid he might be turning, she broke apart to look into his eyes and confirm her fears but smiled satisfied when she saw the honey colored orbs meeting her eyes.

"It´s you," she said and moved her hand from the back of his head to cup his cheek while she moved her leg to sit straddling him, the heat in her core becoming a wildfire when she felt the harder part of his body against her. Timidly, she pressed her pelvis against his, slowly starting to grind her hips as she felt his hands in her lower back sliding even lower until they were softly placed on her rump, bringing her even closer to him.

Inuyasha resumed the licking and nibbling on her neck following the path left uncovered by the folds of her yukata. In an effort to stabilize his breathing he inhaled deeply and filled his lungs with much-needed oxygen while his nose detected the strong musky scent emanating from the female body he was holding so tight. He felt as if he was going to catch fire, his senses were in overdrive, tasting, breathing, watching, hearing and touching Kagome, he wouldn´t last much longer at this pace. He remembered Miroku´s advice then, he should keep his mate satisfied. With that purpose in mind, he moved her so that her head remained cradled in his shoulder and her butt was on his lap, his raging erection pressed firmly against her hip.

In this new position, he found a little respite and could concentrate all his efforts on pleasing his lady. While one of his arms supported Kagome´s head, he had the other free to roam the length of her legs, his deadly talons grazing the skin from her hip to her knee until he gathered the nerve to venture his hand under the fabric of her yukata. Very gently, he traced the lace of her panties up to the place where the heat was more intense.

Kagome gasped for air and bit her lip as she felt a new wave of pleasure wash through her body. She held on to Inuyasha´s shoulders as if she were in danger of falling when the intense emotions threatened to collapse her.

Inuyasha was very mindful of his claws as he found the way under Kagome´s panties. She felt her wiggle her bottom in his lap as she couldn´t keep still, a strained sound escaping her mouth. He kept working his fingers deliberately slow upon reaching the soft curls that covered her pelvis. He swallowed hard and kept sliding the pads of his fingers very carefully. He stopped for a moment noticing that the hairs under his fingers were growing wetter the further he reached.

 _"She´s well lubricated, "_ he thought to himself _, "that should be a good sign."_ He then found a little nub and stopped again when Kagome moaned a little louder.

"Don´t stop, please." She said in a strangled voice which he found very alluring.

He looked into her eyes and nodded, not sure if he could manage to speak at the moment.

Biting softly on the skin right above her collar bone, Inuyasha resumed the explorations, his fingers moving gingerly between slick folds. He didn´t dare try to find the entrance to her core, so he remained there stroking the small nub and licking his way over the fabric where he found a hardened peak. His tongue curling around it, he focused his attention on said peak, sucking and nipping on the sensitive skin until the fabric was soaking wet, the flower pattern clinging to Kagome´s skin like a tattoo. He moved to the other peak, satisfied by the way she responded to his attentions, back arched, pink cheeks, lips parted and soft panting coming out of them.

Kagome opened her eyes for just a moment to check on Inuyasha again, making eye contact and reaffirming that he was still himself and confirming that her reiki was still under her control, she finally crumbled into his arms. She could feel the growing tension taking over her body, burning her with its heat, so when she felt herself breaking apart, convulsing violently, she welcomed the blissful release and cried out her lover's name.

"Inuyashaaa."

The hanyo froze in place the moment he heard his name, or more like the syllables that made it up, come out her lush full lips. Had he hurt her? Had his talons cut her?

Retrieving his hand and straightening his back, he surveyed her from head to toe.

"Did I hurt you?"

"Oh no, just the opposite." Kagome smiled sweetly and brought her mouth to him, kissing him deeply and languidly. They broke apart and she cupped his cheek looking into his eyes.

"And now it's your turn Inuyasha."


	24. Chapter 23- In her hands

23- In her hands

Hello, dears! Sorry to keep you waiting. It has been a terrible month but I´m alive and kicking! I really hope you like this smutty little chapter.

Warning: adult content ahead. If you are not comfortable with this kind of material, feel free to skip this chapter.

Disclaimer: I don´t own anything yet!

Inuyasha gaped at the petite woman kneeling between his thighs trying to make sense of her words.

"My turn?" He asked.

"Yes, your turn." She reassured him and returned to kissing his lips, slowly moving down his neck, spraying little pecks down his throat and stopping when she reached his Adam's apple. She was fascinated by the way it bobbed up and down as if the hanyou was gulping for air.

A mischievous grin adorned her lips as her tongue darted out of her mouth to lick and slide over and around it, making Inuyasha fidget in his seat. The girl's hands moved soothingly up and down his chest until he was quiet again, breathing heavily but pacified.

She raised her head and their eyes made contact, their mouths reconnecting again in a deep hungry kiss. One of Kagome's hands probing under the lapels of his kosode, pulling on it until she released it from the knot keeping the hakama on his hips. Finally, she could reach what had been covered by the clothes. Wasting no time, she started caressing him with gentle fingers. She had wanted to get acquainted with his skin for so long, imagining how it would be like, dreaming of his body under her hands, yet the actual tactile sensation was so different from her fantasies. His chest was toned and smooth, so warm that they could do without the fire and she wouldn´t feel the cool air of the night.

She heard the boy hiss as her fingers continued their exploration on a downward route and her eyes moved to search his face only to find him looking away from her, his eyes closed and a deep shade of red covering his handsome features.

Unsure of what to do next, Kagome decided to taste what she had been touching would be a good plan. So, she slid her tongue up and down the smooth firm flesh nuzzling his neck with her nose when she reached the junction with his shoulder. Resting her cheek on his chest, she inhaled deeply, closing her eyes to savor the scent that was his only, masculine and pure, so much like the forest itself. She could hear the sound of Inuyasha's heart pounding wildly against her ear and she touched her chest to feel her own heart following a similar rhythm.

She had wanted to concentrate on him, give him back as much pleasure as he had given her, but somehow her plan had backfired and now she was getting more and more aroused with every little acknowledgment of his body. Her heart was overflowing with emotions, she wanted to show him how much she loved him, that he was the only one who could make her feel like this. She had to swallow a lump that had suddenly formed in her throat

 _"Stop it, silly girl_ ," she told herself, _"or you´ll end up crying."_

Once again, she let her hands wander down his skin until she found the knot on his hakama and tugged on it. One of Inuyasha´s large hands was on top of hers in a second, preventing her from tugging again.

"No." He spoke calmly in spite of being so nervous and stimulated, he managed to make his voice sound normal.

"The clothes stay on" He continued and had to stop before his voice broke.

Kagome did not flinch, she just let the knot be and did as he had done with her underwear, she just slipped her hand under the waistline of his pants making him almost jump out of his skin at the sudden contact. Once again, he managed to regain his composure as Kagome´s kind fingers fondled the soft hairs on his lower abdomen.

The young miko wanted to keep showing confidence in her actions but she was still not sure what she should do next. She could feel the heat radiating from Inuyasha´s body, it was hotter the more she neared his hardened member, she knew that it was very close to her fingertips. Warily, she reached her fingers only to brush against its side and immediately recoiled when she heard Inuyasha utter a low grunt.

She bit her lip and tried again, this time running her knuckles hesitantly up and down his length. Another grunt reached her ears and she retreated again.

"Am I doing it wrong?" She dared to ask looking into his eyes, the molten gold shining fiercely, confirming he was still in control of his demon blood.

Inuyasha didn´t trust his voice to remain calm this time. He spoke with a low hoarse tone he almost couldn´t recognize as his own.

"It´s alright." He had to stop and breath between the short sentences. "Just wrap your fingers around it." "He stopped again for air. " Like you were holding Tessaiga."

"Like this?" She asked while palming the firm hot flesh.

"Mmhmm"

Inuyasha didn´t even dare to speak this time, he just nodded his answer and tried his hardest not to thrust his hips in her hands. The burning sensation of Kagome´s delicate hands touching him in the most intimate way had him on the edge. He was now literally in her hands, he felt more vulnerable than ever in his life and he was certain he was going to embarrass himself in her eyes.

In the quiet of the night, the little gasping sounds coming from the hanyou were easy to hear, even when he was trying desperately to muffle them.

When he couldn´t take it anymore he grabbed the girl´s wrist and showed her how to move her hand. Kagome gasped but did not retreat her hand, curiosity getting the best of her. Following the slow rhythm Inuyasha´s hand had set, she was dismayed to find out the size of his shaft was bigger than she had expected.

" _It´s too big! There´s no way it´ll fit inside me."_ She thought remembering his words. _"Like Tessaiga."_

Indeed, the comparison was uncanny. His member really resembled his sword, with fur on the base and the huge blade on top.

Eyes wide in shock and gasping loudly, Kagome noticed another strange thing, the hot, tight skin covering the iron like flesh was growing wetter every time her palm moved over its tip, making her hand slide easier.

"Shit!" Inuyasha mumbled through tightly grit teeth.

Kagome looked up at his scrunched-up face and smiled satisfied, he seemed to be too far gone.

 _"Maybe I should speed thing up a little."_ She thought.

Working her hand in a new faster pace, she could hear Inuyasha gasping and moaning, thrusting his hips forward and backward.

"Fuck!" He almost yelled this time when his body tensed up before spilling his hot seed in Kagome´s loving hand.

Kagome didn´t want to move, afraid that she might break the atmosphere. She just waited with her head in Inuyasha´s lap until his breathing was back to normal, her hand still inside his hakama.

When he finally worked up the courage to look into her eyes, Inuyasha found Kagome smiling at him, adoration plain in her eyes. He wanted to say something important, to show her that this moment between them had meant much more than satisfying his needs. He was about to open his mouth when the young woman lifted her head and looking straight into his eyes said:

"So, you like to cuss when you have sex, ha?"


	25. Chapter 24- A storm is coming

24- A storm is coming.

Disclaimer: I still own nothing at all.

Sorry it´s been taking so long, thank you so much for your patience.

The morning came too soon for Kagome, who had spent the night snuggled up against a hanyou´s side, too overwhelmed by emotions to sleep soundly. Instead, she kept waking up every few minutes to steal glances at his sleeping form just to make sure he hadn´t fled to the forest the first chance he got. And every time she opened her eyes and found him sleeping next to her, her heart seemed to grow a couple of sizes.

It had been difficult to convince him to stay. The girl smiled remembering the heated argument the night before.

"You can´t leave after what we just did!" She had tried to make him feel guilty but when that didn´t work she had resorted to blackmailing him.

"Either you stay here and sleep with me or I´ll go after you and sleep in the forest too!"

That had the desired effect on him, as she had expected. Protecting her was his top priority and she had taken advantage of it.

"Relax, silly, nobody knows you´re here. We were all expecting you tomorrow."

After that, both of them were much more comfortable around the other, enough to have a repeat performance of their previous activities, so they went to bed in a far better mood.

The hanyou had been unusually tired. His exhausting journey added to his own stress, the energy burned during their amorous encounters and the relaxing effect Kagome had on him had been enough to give him a the restful sleep he desperately needed but was too proud to acknowledge.

Kagome sighed coming back to the present, disentangling her limbs from Inuyasha´s slumbering form and stretched languidly. She didn´t really want to leave the bed, or her beloved dogboy to be honest, but she had planned to meet Jinenji today for their first lesson and she couldn´t just leave him hanging. Thus, with one last look at Inuyasha´s peaceful face and a sigh, she got up and started her daily morning routine.

Inuyasha woke up to the sound of a sliding door being shut, his ears perking up and trying to follow the soft sound of footsteps moving away from the house. He shot up to a sitting position in a heartbeat, not fully awake yet, the scent of the young woman clinging to him and lulling his senses. He inhaled deeply filling his lungs with her essence when he noticed the smell of food underneath it and his stomach growled guiding his nose straight to the kitchen where Kagome had left his breakfast ready.

 _"She´s left. Why didn´t she wake me up?"_ He wondered.

After satisfying his basic needs, Inuyasha went back to the bedroom. He took one look at the bed and felt his lips curling up in a smile. It had been too easy to let Kagome spoil him, he could get used to this life quickly. With a lazy yawn, he sat down on the bed and pondered on what to do next. Without his permission, thoughts of the previous night sneaked to the front of his mind, making his face feel hot again.

 _" Keh! That old fart Myoga knows nothing. Kagome´s no threat to me"_

He kept thinking about the fleas warning while tracing Kagome's form on the bedding with his fingertips _. "I was in full control. Sure, I could feel my demon wanted to break free, but I was able to overpower it easily. No danger to Kagome, either"_

The prospect of their married life suddenly felt one he looked forward to. He looked down at the empty bed where they both had laid for the night. Maybe he could go back to bed a while longer, he would wait for Kagome in bed and then they could...

"Stop your dirty thoughts!" He almost shouted to the empty house.

 _"I swear, sometimes I think I´m turning into Miroku!"_

Getting up slowly, he decided to get out and help with the wedding preparations. In just a couple of days, he and Kagome would be husband and wife. The realization of his dreams was just hours away. Before he had time to entertain any more lewd ideas, Inuyasha focused on something more mundane.

"I´d better get out there and make myself useful."

He decided that the first thing to do would be recovering the wedding present he had hidden in the bathroom the night before together with the locket Kagome had given him a couple of years ago. He had travelled with both near his heart, under the layers of his suikan, protected by his armor-like garment, hidden from prying eyes. He had made sure no one could notice he had kept the locket and as it turned out, the inner fold of his suikan was a very good hiding spot. It had taken some convincing to get Totosai to work with gold, he´d better take good care of this present if he wanted it to remain a surprise for Kagome, he would put both objects back after getting dressed.

Once he took care of his first task, he returned to searching around the house trying to find his clothes. The previous night he had managed, with Kagome´s help, to soil two different pairs of hakamas, which his soon to be wife diligently washed and hung by the fireplace so he could have something clean to wear in the morning. He ended up sleeping in a kosode, which had been quite comfortable, he admitted, but not suitable to wear around the village. When he couldn't find his fire rat in any other place, he went back to the bedroom to search the chest where she kept all of her clothes.

Carefully spreading Kagome´s sleeping yukata and some pieces of clothes he found over the bed together with his treasures. Inuyasha finally found his fire rat robe at the bottom of the chest.

Smiling without noticing it, the hanyou got dressed and was about to put Kagome´s clothes back in the chest when something caught his eye. The first thing was something he had already seen in Kagome´s time, a piece of parchment with a very realistic painting. He sat down on the bed and studied it carefully. The girl in the portrait looked very much like Kagome, but her eyes were different, a sad look adorned them. She was dressed up like a princess and some useless guy was standing there, next to her, arm in arm.

"Akitoki? Can´t be, but he looks like his relative from Kagome´s time."

Inuyasha growled at the picture, whoever it was, he didn´t like it one bit, he was touching his fiancée and looking too happy about it. He decided to examine the other object in an attempt to give his youkai blood time to cool off. It was a little black box with some flowers painted on some strange looking kanji. The half-demon brought it closer to his nose and smelled it.

"It´s not food." He decided. It didn´t smell like anything he knew.

He then opened the box and looked inside. Mindful of his talons, he carefully unfolded a long strip, he had no clue what this could be. He put it back in the box and tried to decipher some of the writing.

As a kid, his mother had taught him the basics of reading an writing. He had only a few years of schooling before she passed away, she had done her best to prepare him for his adult life. He knew it wasn´t much, but he wasn´t an ignorant, nor was he an expert either.

"Maybe it´s a present."

The idea of Akitoki´s relative giving presents to Kagome and being around her made his blood boil. he needed to know what this thing was and he needed to know right now.

 _"The monk is well educated_ ," he thought getting up in a flash _, " He can probably tell me what the fuck this is."_

He stormed out of the house leaving everything as it was, the only thoughts on his mind were figuring out what Kagome had brought from the future and what it had to do with the boy in the picture.


	26. Chapter 25- Thunder rumbles

25- Thunder rumbles

Hello my dears! I hate to do this to my OTP, but we need the drama before we get to the happy ending. It´s not so bad, for now.

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to the wonderful Rumiko Takahashi.

"Can you read it or not?" The hanyou´s impatience was growing by the second and it was impossible to disregard it.

Miroku had been studying the little box for some minutes now and nothing had come of it.

"Be patient my friend. The only thing I can tell is that this is some kind of protection." The monk spoke without tearing his eyes from the strange object. "Let me take it home so I can check some of the books Kagome-sama lent me. I´ve made some notes that can be useful to understand modern writing."

"Do it already!" Inuyasha answered trying hard to remain calm.

"Can you take care of the girls in the meantime?" Miroku knew his friend was in a foul mood, but he trusted he would take good care of the twins.

Inuyasha just growled in answer. Maybe spending some time with the children would take his mind off the questions tormenting him.

The monk left his daughters and their favorite uncle in the backyard and returned to the sudden darkness inside his home. The sky was grey and the air had been getting colder as the hours passed. Rain could be expected any moment now, hopefully, it would allow the laundry to dry first.

The young father went straight to the chest where he kept his sutras and scrolls, he remembered exactly where he had placed the book he had mentioned. Sitting in the middle of the room with all his studying material spread around him, he focused on the notes he had taken while reading a magazine Kagome brought him covering the topic of medicinal herbs in traditional medicine. He was so immersed in it that he didn´t notice his wife standing in front of him, a questioning look in her eyes and a basketful of vegetables on her arms.

"What is this mess?" She asked shaking him out of his concentration.

"Sango, my dearest! I didn´t hear you coming." The houshi sat straight again and looked back down to his notes. "I´m trying to understand something from Kagome-sama´s era."

Sango left the basket on the floor and kneeled down in front of her husband gathering the scrolls he had discarded when her eyes stumbled on the little black box. Gingerly, she lifted it closer to her eyes, squinting in the semi-darkness of their home.

"Oh, is this it? I think I know what it is." She said turning it and examining closely. "We talked about it a couple of times, but she never actually brought one of these to our era before."

"So, what is it? I could only figure it´s some kind of protection, but I can´t understand protection against what."

"Well...er..." Sango flustered as she tried to explain to her husband what Kagome had told her. "She said it was for... what did she call it? ...safe sex?"

Miroku´s eyes widened at his wife´s sudden red face.

"Safe sex? Please explain this a little further. How does it work." Miroku´s mischievous grin grew wider as her already embarrassed face disappeared behind her hands.

The red in Sango´s face was reaching the top of her ears by now, she felt she could burst into flames any minute.

"Kagome-chan said it was for the man to wear on his... on his... there!" She finished signaling his crotch with her right index finger, the left hand never leaving her face, she just spread her fingers and peeked through them.

Miroku let out a mirthful laughter and moved forward to put his arm around Sango´s shoulder and kissed the top of her head.

Kami, he loved this woman so much. Three years together and she still blushed like a virgin.

"Stop laughing at me!" She said returning the hug but still hiding her face from him. "And keep it quiet, the baby´s sleeping."

"Now the little drawings make sense." The monk said still trying to suppress his merriment. "You think we can borrow some? There are plenty to share. I´d like to try safe sex, that´s one thing we hadn´t done yet."

Slowly raising her head, Sango smiled at him, her face still tainted a light shade of pink.

"Maybe we can try tonight. Will you do that little dance while you take off your robes? After the children are asleep, of course."

Now there was no way he could hold back his laughter.

"Anything for you, my love." Miroku got up and help Sango to her feet. "Now let me get the girls inside before it rains."

"Get the laundry too, please." Sango said to his back while she kneeled back on the floor to collect the mess left by her husband before the girls came running and laughing.

The sky was getting darker and thunder could be heard rumbling not so far away. Miroku went straight to where his friend was standing rubbing his ears, probably after being abused by his two little angels.

"Seems Kagome-sama is getting ready for the wedding night." He said as he passed the hanyou and went to collect the dry laundry. He looked over his shoulder as Inuyasha approached him, a look of confusion marring his features. "The little black box, Sango told me what it is." The houshi turned around, his arms full of the clean clothing. "Turns out I was right, it is for protection, against unwanted pregnancy, among other things."

Miroku dropped his smile. He had been expecting to find the half-demon red-faced and embarrassed and make fun of him for a while. Instead, he found his friend´s expression had changed from confusion to shock, his eyes wide and frantically pacing back and forth. The monk was starting to worry, this is not what he had foreseen, something was wrong.

"Inuyasha..." he couldn´t finish his question. He was left standing alone in the middle of his backyard, the sound of a low growl and scurrying feet was the last he heard when Inuyasha hastily made a leap for the trees and disappeared in the foliage.

Making a quick dash for the house, Miroku almost run into his wife and dropped the laundry to her feet.

"What´s wrong?" she asked grabbing his shoulders for support.

"I´m not sure, but I´d better go after Inuyasha. He looked very angry when he left. Do you know where to find Kagame-sama?

"She said she would be training with Jinenji today."

"Take the kids to Kaede´s, Rin-chan is supposed to be there. Then meet me at Jinenji´s. I have a bad feeling about this."

Sango did not waste time. She grabbed the sleeping baby and wrapped him around her back while her daughters followed her around the house.

"Hurry up girls, I have to go help Kagome-chan. You will be staying with Rin-chan for a while."

The young mother ran as fast as she could with the three children. Something had her husband all wrought up and it involved Kagome and Inuyasha. She didn´t know what it was or what she could do, she just knew Miroku and her had to be there for them.


	27. Chapter 27- Lightning crashes

Hello again! I'm still alive and kicking. I know it´s taking longer to update, sorry about that. I just want to thank you all for your patience follows and reviews.

This chapter is dedicated to ihavetoriblenews who reviews almost every chapter: You seem to be one step ahead of me all the time, I hope you like this one.

More notes at the end.

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they belong to the talented Rumiko Takahashi.

26 Lightning Crashes

Kagome´s cheeks were tainted a darker shade of pink than usual and it had nothing to do with working on the herb garden like the gentle hanyou beside her was thinking. Jinenji had decided that the best approach to her training was to pick the herbs by herself as he described the right way to cut and dry them, before teaching her how to prepare the healing concoctions. The weather was not so bad and they were only a few yards from the cabin he shared with his mother, in case they needed to find shelter from the storm nearing.

The girl´s mind, however, had wandered off as she found herself reliving the events of the previous night over and over again.

"Tonight, being the new moon, it should be easier to persuade him to try something different." No sooner had that thought popped into her mind than her blush became darker.

"I think we should end today´s lesson" Jinenji´s voice only made her feel more ashamed of the path her mind had followed. "You look a little feverish, maybe we shouldn´t stay outside much longer."

"Oh, I´m fine." She tried to convince him. "I´m just a little absent-minded, worrying about the wedding, you know." Her head bowed in an apologetic way. "I´m sorry. Let´s finish the lesson, please."

"Are you sure? We can continue tomorrow if you´re having a tough time concentrating."

"I´m positive. Where were we?"

Looking for a few seconds at his reflection on the quiet silvery surface of the brook, Inuyasha dipped his hands on the cool water and splashed some of it on his face.

He needed to cool off. He had run like a maniac and hadn´t stop since Miroku told him what the little black box was. At the moment he felt desperate, he needed answers.

"So, she doesn´t want to have babies." He started his monologue pacing the bank ok the little stream up and down. "But whose babies? Mine? Akitoki´s?"

He felt like his head was about to explode. Going through the same questions time and again.

"I´m so stupid, waiting for her to return like a loyal dog and her..." He fell to the ground on his knees, both hands grabbing his head. "No, it can´t be. She came back to me, she promised. She never broke her promise."

Once again the image of Kagome holding a silver-haired baby replayed in his mind, teasing him with something that he might never get and leaving him with a sense of emptiness.

Life couldn´t be so cruel, presenting him with a woman that he loved more than anything and then taking her away from him only to bring her back just a little different than she had been when they met.

"It can´t be true, Kagome didn´t change that much."

He kneeled on the floor taking fistfuls of dirt, his head hanging and his hair flowing around his face, as he tried desperately to take deep cleansing breaths to calm himself down. If only he had brought Tessaiga with him, he would find it easier to get a hold of his emotions but the sword had been nowhere in his mind when he left the house. He could feel the demon blood in his veins demanding to be free while memories of Kagome in his arms kept torturing him.

She had been too eager to take the next step, he hadn´t thought anything of that fact before but now everything made him suspicious. Did that mean she had already tried it? Did she want to experience new stuff with him? Or that she just wanted him so badly?

He chuckled to himself. Whoever had wanted him before? He didn´t even know the feeling.

The more he tried to figure things out for himself, the more confused he got.

"I have to find her. I need to hear it from her."

In a heartbeat, Inuyasha got up and flew to the treetops following the directions to Jinenji´s farm.

"And this one can be used to cure headaches, canker sores and vertigo." Jinenji moved some wild grass aside so that Kagome could see the plant for herself.

"Really? Can this flower be used for all that?"

The girl had been trying hard to be attentive to his lesson, but she was too eager to go back home and reached out trying to pick the herb only to get her fingers pricked by the thistle flower. Had she been more focused on what she was doing, she would have noticed the thorns.

"Ouch!" Her hand immediately retreated for inspection, her index and middle finger displaying several little prickles.

Jinenji just smiled.

"Don´t worry, it happens all the time." He extended his hand and took Kagome´s much smaller one between his large fingers bending his head to have a better look at the thorns. "I´ll give you an ointment for the sting and to prevent infections after I get all the little thorns out."

Inuyasha had just landed on the border of the garden where the trees gave way to the herbs, he sniffed the air a couple of times before he saw them both kneeling among the plants, Kagome wearing her Miko garbs smiling sheepishly and Jinenji holding her hand. And that´s the last thing he saw before everything turned red.

Kagome felt the demonic aura approaching them but barely had any time to warn the gentle hanyou before she recognized the owner of the youki.

Growling savagely and striding forward like a raging bull, Inuyasha barely stopped in front of them with a vicious snarl, bearing his fangs in an intimidating grin. Jinenji turned wide fearful eyes at him immediately letting go of Kagome´s hand and backing away from the now full demon Inuyasha. The bigger hanyou could hear Kagome´s firm protests that Inuyasha should calm down but the boy didn´t seem to understand her, he just shoved a fist at Jinenji´s chest and grabbed the young Miko draping her over his shoulder before taking off in the direction of the forest. He didn´t turn back when the sound of a collision announced Jinenji´s body had crashed into the wall of his own cabin nor did he seem to recognize the old woman crying out to the collapsed form of her son.

Kagome had witnessed all of it and was beyond disquieted. What did just happen? What could have caused Inuyasha´s change? He couldn´t have believed Jinenji was a threat to her security. Had he met some other demon on his way there? Was he just trying to protect her from some dangerous creature?

"Inuyasha, stop! Let go of me!"

If he could understand her, Kagome didn´t know for sure. She could see his furry ears reacting to the sound of her voice, but the demon didn´t show any signs of acknowledging her.

Several minutes past while they headed further away from the village and into the heart of the forest. Finally, Inuyasha slowed down and stopped in a clearing in the shade of some ancient tree. Gusts of chilly wind blew their hair in front of their faces making Kagome shiver when the heat of his body abandoned her as he gently put her down on her own feet.

Eying her up and down, his nose started to follow the same route as his eyes had, frantically sniffing her from head to toe. He stopped at the tip of her right hand where some thorns were still hanging and a few droplets of blood were now visible. Slowly, he took the bloody fingers to his mouth and licked the blood away together with the thorns, sniffing her hand until he was apparently satisfied with her scent.

The contact of her damaged fingertips against the damp heat of his tongue struck Kagome like a lightning bolt, her body reacting promptly to the sensual caress, her cheeks become redder as heat pooled in her nether regions and her breathing became more erratic. All worries about what had just occurred forgotten.

The red-eyed demon must have sensed a change in her scent because almost immediately he was kneeling in front of her, sniffing the fabric of her hakama from her knees upwards making her spread her legs to make room for his curious nose. He found the source of the scent with no effort, nuzzling her pubis, taking deep inhales and rumbling low in his chest.

The sheer vibration of the sound against her most intimate area had Kagome´s knees weakening and her blood boiling, she had to look for the support of a tree trunk against her back to avoid falling to the ground.

"Inuyasha..." His name fell from her mouth in the form of a moan, Kagome licked her dry lips and tried again "Inuyasha!"

But the demon didn´t seem to hear her voice, he was too busy trying to make the pleasurable scent more intense, he resorted to nibbling and pecking the area where he had found the source of it before licking over the fabric.

Satisfied with the spike in his mate scent, the red-eyed demon got to his feet and spreading the girl's legs with his hands on the back of her thighs, he was finally able to grind his raging erection against her heated center.

Kagome tried desperately to find the strength to fight the urge, but her resolution was melting easily under Inuyasha's demanding caresses. Her body craved his contact in any form he came, hanyou, demon, human, it didn´t matter. She loved him in all his forms and she trusted him, she knew he would never hurt her. She felt his tongue tracing hot trails on her neck and felt the bite of his fangs against her skin before his lips sucked on it.

"Are you trying to give me a hickey?"

She couldn´t help but smile. Maybe he was trying to mark her. She could feel him repeat this sequence several times going around her collarbone and spreading the lapels of her kosode with his nose, never stopping his excited sniffing.

When she felt his tongue curling around her bare nipple Kagome had to swallow hard. She needed to stop this before they went too far.

Ignoring the protests of her body she tried to break away from Inuyasha, cupping his face with both hands and forcing him to make eye contact.

"Inuyasha, please, we need to stop."

He just grunted and dipped his head in her breasts again making her moan loudly in protest.

"Kagome-chan! Where are you?"

Sango´s voice felt like a bucket of icy water, bringing her back to reality. If they didn´t stop, Sango may find them in such a compromising position.

"Please, Inuyasha, let me go."

He still didn´t seem to loosen his grip on her legs, so she started kicking until she could feel her feet touching the ground. Still, Inuyasha didn´t release her, his hands were planted firmly on her waist.

"Kagome-sama! Inuyasha!"

This time she heard Miroku´s voice, he and Sango both were looking for them.

"I´m sorry Inuyasha... Oswari!"

When the spell finally forced him to the ground Kagome was able to get free from him and started running towards the voices of their friends, adjusting her clothes to some sort of normal appearance and hoping to find them before the spell weakened.

She ran as fast as she could and started screaming her friend's names.

"Sango-chan! I´m here Sango-chan!"

The taijiya was relieved to hear her friend not so far away and cried to her husband to come this way when Kagome almost crashed into her form.

"Kagome-chan! Are you alright? We went to JInenji´s and found out what happened?"

Kagome was still out of air and panting while her friend inspected her body for any injuries.

"Oh, dear Kami!" Sango exclaimed her hand moving Kagome´s hair to the side to have a better look at her neck. "Inuyasha did this?"

Kagome´s discomfiture after having made out with Inuyasha in his demon form almost naked in the open forest was nearly drowning her. She didn´t know what to answer without telling her what had really happened so she just remained silent and let Sango thoroughly examine the marks on her neck. In the distance, the sound of thunder foretold the following clatter of lightning striking. The storm was finally upon them.

So… that was it. I´m still trying to figure out how to post on this site, it seems to get everything tight together, no spaces between lines. Anyway, I always wondered if Inuyasha could get so jealous that he would turn full youkai, I just gave him a little encouragement, that´s all. I hope you don´t hate me for this, there is going to be a little more angst and drama before the end, which is not so far away. 

I hope to hear your thoughts on this one.

Love, ALP.


	28. Chapter 28- New moon

27 New moon

Hello again! I´m so glad that many of you took the time to write me, Thank you very much. I´m going to try uploading the archives from my computer instead copying and pasting, with any luck it will look more organized at least.

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they are the property of Rumiko Takahashi.

The smell of wet dirt assaulting his nose was the first thing Inuyasha noticed when he came to. Thin little droplets splashed against his face as he looked up at the dark clouds trying to get his bearings. He figured he must have turned full demon and wandered into the woods, to what purpose, he still didn´t know. Almost immediately, his nose told him Kagome had been here not too long ago. He got up and sniffed the area trying to understand what he was doing there with her, a task made more difficult with the drizzle that had just started falling. A cocky smile tugged at his lips when he recognized a small difference in her scent, she was aroused. They had probably been making out in the forest, he could still feel the aftermath of arousal in his own body. His smile disappeared when he detected a subtle undernote in Kagome´s scent, blood. It was faint but still strong enough for his superior senses to detect it. However, the humidity in the air prevented him from following the rapidly fainting smells.

With one powerful leap, Inuyasha perched himself on the top branch of the tallest tree he could find, his ears trained in the forest trying to discern Kagome´s whereabouts. He remained quiet until he could pick up the voices of two women to his south. He leaped to the next tree moving as quietly as he could so he did not lose the sounds, only an indistinguishable murmur at the moment since he still couldn´t decipher their conversation. Stealthily, he leapt to the next treetop and on to the next one until he was close enough to understand what they were saying. He smiled cockily when he was able to smell Kagome´s scent again before he saw her and Sango. The taijiya was checking Kagome´s neck, her voice rising in pitch.

"Did Inuyasha hurt you?"

Inuyasha´s smile was wiped off his face instantly as he waited with baited breath for her answer.

Kagome remained silent for a few seconds, not wanting to lie to her best friend.

"Sango-chan..."

"There you are." Miroku´s sudden arrival silenced the young Miko for the moment. " How did you get so far ahead? Where´s Inuyasha?" The agitated monk looked around, searching for his friend and then stopping on Kagome, mulling over her disheveled appearance. "Are you alright Kagome-sama?"

"I'm fine, I don´t know where he is, he just took me deep into the forest..." Kagome sighed heavily and continued. "He was full youkai, he didn´t respond, it was different than other times." She passed her hands over her face, combing through her hair and crossing her arms over her chest. "I had to sit him to escape."

The astonished look on the couple´s faces was almost comical, Kagome thought she would have laughed had the situation been different. Sango was the first snap out of it.

"Let´s get you home before the rain gets any worst. I left some broth for the kid´s dinner, you look like you can use a hot meal."

"Thank you Sango-chan but I want to see Jinenji first. I have to check if he´s injured."

"We better hurry then, if we don´t want to get soaked." Miroku said as he ushered the women in the direction of Jinenji´s farm.

Inuyasha was frozen in place, questions about what he had done plaguing him. Was Kagome hurt? Had he hurt her? She didn´t accuse him openly, she was way too loyal to admit it if he had treated her like a rabid beast. It had happened again, he had sworn to protect Kagome and then turned against her. Inuyasha was devastated, it was clear he couldn´t be trusted with the girl´s safety. How could she ever trust him after this?

Swiftly and carelessly, he changed his direction, not really aware where he was going, he just wanted to put distance between them.

Later that evening, after making sure Jinenji wasn´t injured just a little shaken up, Kagome finally let Sango take care of her. Being physically and mentally exhausted, the young woman could no longer argue with her friend, she just marched straight to the bathroom letting Sango cook dinner while she bathed and changed into a clean yukata she had left to dry by the fireplace the night before.

"You can leave now, Sango-chan. I´m sure your children are missing you already." Kagome said as she sat at the kitchen table to have the soup Sango had made.

After Kagome refused to spend the night at their place, Sango had insisted she would stay with her that night and Miroku just agreed with his wife.

"Don´t worry about them Kagome-chan, Miroku and Rin-chan are there. I just want to make sure you are fine."

"I am fine," Kagome interjected hoping to convince her friend. She was grateful for Sango´s help but just wanted to be alone, in case Inuyasha came home. She took a sip of the broth and reached for her chopsticks, feeling invigorated by the warm meal.

"I don´t know if I should leave you alone. Aren´t you going to tell me what happened in the forest?" Sango made a pause to watch Kagome´s reaction and reached for her own bowl of steaming soup. "Did Inuyasha attack you?"

Kagome put the bowl down, a slight blush covering her face.

"I´m sorry Sango-chan, I should have told you this before but was too embarrassed to even mention it." She made a pause and sighed determined to let her friend know Inuyasha was not dangerous. "Inuyasha did not attack me. These marks are actually love bites."

Kagome hid her face behind the bowl after that, drinking the remaining soup while trying to avoid Sango´s stare.

"Really?" Now it was Sango´s turn to blush and let out a little girly laugh. "We thought he was in a murderous rampage after he attacked Jinenji like that."

Kagome had finally summoned the courage to look her friend in the eyes.

"That was a strange thing to happen, maybe he had an encounter with another youkai and had to turn full demon to defend himself."

"I think I that wasn´t what caused the change," Sango said while she poured some water for Kagome and herself.

"He was with Miroku this morning, he wanted to know what this was." Sango put down the water pitcher and produced the little black box from the lapels of her yukata.

Kagome stared at the offending object as if it was the first time she had seen it. With trembling fingers, she extended her hand and took it from Sango´s. As realization dawned on her, tears began to run down her face.

"I forgot I had these."

Kagome wiped her tears with the back of her hand and stood up. She walked to the bedroom followed by Sango, freezing after the shoji door slid open. Her eyes widened at the sight of her belongings carelessly spread on the bed and on top of that the picture her mother had taken that dreadful night.

"He must have seen the picture and imagined something happened between Hojo and me" Kagome felt like crying again. She could imagine what Inuyasha must be feeling right now. She could still remember vividly what she had felt like every time Inuyasha left her side to follow after Kikyo and it wasn´t a nice memory.

She sat down on the bed stretching her hand to retrieve something else that had been left on the bed. A small leather pouch attached to a cord. She pulled the cord and dropped the contents on her lap. Adjusting her eyes to the dim light the blackish clouds let through, she could distinguish two shining objects, the heart-shaped locket she had given Inuyasha the day she had kissed him inside the mirror and another which she had never seen before. It was a diamond ring, the golden band looked handcrafted as well as the rough edges of the stone sitting in its center.

Sango silently watched over her friend as she finally collapsed on the bed quietly sobbing, her hands fisting the objects she had found inside the pouch. Slowly, she kneeled down beside the bed, rubbing soothing circles on Kagome´s back.

"He got me a ring Sango."

The young mother just nodded and continued to rub her friends back trying to get her to calm down. When the sobbing finally subsided Sango got to her feet and covered the young miko with a blanket, darkness surrounding them as the moonless night raised over the dark clouds. She left her sleeping friend alone in the bedroom and proceeded to lit some lanterns to illuminate the house in the hope that Inuyasha would arrive to take refuge for the night of the new moon. She cleaned the kitchen and sat by the fire to wait for Inuyasha to return, the sounds of rainfall lulling her senses after the tiring day, she fell asleep without even noticing.

The sound of shuffling feet woke Kagome up the next morning and she almost jumped out of the bed.

"Kaede-oba-san!" The startled girl caught the old lady as she was about to leave her room.

"I´m sorry child, I didn´t mean to wake you." Said the older miko turning to face her. " How are you feeling?"

"I´m fine." the girl repeated for the umpteenth time in the last 24 hours.

"I came early today so that Sango could go home. I´m making some breakfast, are you hungry?"

"Not really. But I´d like some tea." Kagome said as she got up from the bed. She could feel her eyes swollen from crying the night before. She was getting tired of crying, it seemed nothing had changed during the last three years. It was time she did something to turn the tables.

Kaede left the girl alone and went to check on the stew.

"Where´s Inuyasha? Did he leave already?" Kaede was surprised by the question and turn her good eye to the girl. Kagome had already changed into her modern clothes and combed her hair, she looked in better shape now, Kaede thought.

"Kagome... Inuyasha..." the old lady hesitated before she could finish the sentence so she tried again. "Inuyasha hasn´t been here all night."

Kagome had hoped to see him last night or this morning at least, she wanted to clear the misunderstandings between them.

"Can I offer you a word of advice child?"

Kagome just nodded, maybe the older woman had some wisdom to share. In any case, she had nothing to lose. She just nodded her head and let Kaede speak.

"I wouldn´t like to meddle in your affairs but I had seen you two suffer enough." Kaede heaved a sad sigh and continued. "Inuyasha has changed a lot since you left us, he is more mature now, but he´s still very insecure. My advice is that you should be open with each other, speak your heart, leave your pride and fears aside."

Kagome walked closer to her mentor and took her wrinkled hands in hers, smiling warmly and nodding for Kaede to continue.

"What happened between Inuyasha and my sister, it was because Naraku took advantage of their distrust. Don´t let that happen again, my dear. You both deserve to be happy."

"I will Kaeda-oba-san. I´ll eat something quickly and go to look for him. I´ll tell him everything ..."

The girl stopped suddenly when she felt a strong youki approaching.

"Inuyasha?" she whispered and run outside.

Against the brightness of the morning sun, she could hardly see the white hair tousling in the light breeze. Kagome stopped just outside of the door frame as the stern look pinned her in place.

"Sesshomaru-sama!" The girl exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"


	29. Chapter 29- A black hole

28 A Black Hole

Hello, dears! Sorry to keep you waiting. I hope everyone´s year had a great start. I struggled a lot with this chapter, I wrote it and rewrote it many times. Hopefully, it doesn´t suck. I wish it is to your liking.

We are near the end, it may take one more chapter o two and maybe an epilogue, who knows if can take it that far.

More notes at the end of the chapter.

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi, I just borrowed them for my story.

A void full of nothing, pure blackness. He tried to open his eyes but couldn´t muster the strength.

"Where am I?"

Inuyasha tried to collect his bearings to no avail, there was nothing he could hear or smell that would give him a hint of his whereabouts. He tried to move his body and again nothing came of it. He seemed to be paralyzed in a vacuum of space.

"Kikyo! I remember! Kikyo shoot me with a sacred arrow. I´m stuck to the Goshinboku for eternity."

All of a sudden, memories assaulted him. The whole village turning against him and Kikyo´s betrayal.

"She said she wanted to live with me and I believed her."

He tried to remember if there had been any hint of love on her part, but couldn´t remember. Kikyós eyes never showed love, or hate for that matter. That was until she fired that arrow, at that moment he could feel her hate all the way across the forest, her eyes burning with loathing and that had hurt a million times more than the shaft piercing his chest.

Then the recollections of another set of eyes replaced Kikyo´s. The cold orbs of the miko turned into warm, smiling eyes. Eyes that had watched him with love. Eyes that had accepted and adored him.

"Kagome!"

The scream was real this time, not just in his head. He could feel his chest vibrating when he pronounced her name.

"What happened? Where am I? Am I in the meido?"

He was starting to panic, the memory of Kagome swallowed by the meido froze his heart with fear.

"I can´t find you... Kagome!"

He tried to scream her name again when a violent bout of coughing stopped him. He could feel his mouth filled with a thick substance that was now spilling from his lips and running down his chin. The taste was unmistakable, he was coughing blood.

Inuyasha tried to calm his speeding heart and breathe normally again, a difficult task considering his lungs were filled with blood.

"How did this happen?"

He couldn´t move his body and he could feel no pain or cold, nothing. His body was numb and his mind was a foggy mess of scrambled memories.

"You need to focus!" He screamed at himself. He had to find Kagome soon. What if she was also injured? If she was bleeding like him her fragile human complexion wouldn´t survive for long.

Taking short breaths, getting as much air as his lungs could receive, and closing his eyes, Inuyasha attempted to focus on his hearing and again, the effort was futile.

"I can´t hear shit, I can´t see shit. Fuck! I can´t even smell my own blood."

What kind of enemy could even do that? He felt as powerless as a small child.

"It's the new moon!"

As realization dawned on him, so did the recount of the last few hours. For the first time since he regained consciousness, he was glad his body was numb, if only the feeling would spread to his heart, he could die peacefully.

The storm was finally upon them when Inuyasha had left in the opposite direction from Kagome, Miroku, and Sango. Feeling disgusted with himself, he couldn´t think clearly. He wandered around the woods until he decided he was far enough from them. He crouched down in a clearing, his clothes and hair damp from the rain, but the turmoil inside keeping him warm.

He deemed himself responsible for Kagome´s well-being ever since the time she pulled Tessaiga free, yet he was the one that kept hurting her.

"I have to stay away from her. It´s the only way."

Inuyasha stopped pacing when he believed he had found the best course to follow. She would be free to live a peaceful life, away from his destructive nature.

"But how can I do that? I can´t help myself, I need her. As long as I´m alive I´m helpless against her."

He stood up and smelled the air. The clouds were thick but the rain had stopped for the moment. He was near the lands of the west, maybe he could pay his aniki a visit, an idea had come to his mind.

Meeting with Sesshomaru and reaching an agreement was the only clear part of his visit to the daiyokai´s palace. After promising to solve the issue with the rivaling uwabami and omukade, Inuyasha demanded Sesshomaru to fulfill his end of the bargain by the next morning, not before.

Standing by the rocky shore of the westernmost lake in his brother´s domains, Inuyasha waited for the leaders of both rivaling clans. Sesshomaru had sent word of the meeting so it didn´t take long for Hitomaru and Toyotomi to appear. Both youkai had chosen to come before him in their human forms, for which the hanyo was grateful. It would have been extremely difficult to carry a conversation had they been in their true massive form.

After a heated discussion where neither of the opposing chiefs had the intention of backing down, Inuyasha came to the conclusion he would have to fight them to assert his father ruling once again. He wasn´t surprised to see the youkais were expecting this outcome when they both showed their real appearance.

The uwabami was the first to attack, charging forward while slidering through the mossy rocks and zigzagging forward then stopping in front of the hanyo and changing directions immediately, its hind section shooting forward like a whip. Dodging the snake´s tail and pivoting on the ball of his feet, Inuyasha launched himself into the air, his claws ready to impact on the snake´s throat but finding that the skin was too thick there, he barely scratched the surface before falling back between the two giants.

Having left Tessaiga behind he could only count on his ***Sankon Tesso** for the moment; he would pull his ***Hijin Kesso** only as a last resort, he decided. He was relying on his speed, using his smaller size to his advantage.

Inuyasha charged again, this time aiming for the omukade´s midsection. He knew he had to stay away from its maw in order to avoid the venomous fangs.

The exchange continued for what seemed to Inuyasha hours, the darkening sky signaling the end of the day was near. The new moon would soon reach them, giving Inuyasha little time to resolve this fight. He knew what he was risking choosing this night for the confrontation but didn´t stop to ponder on the outcome for too long, he thought about what Kagome might say if she knew what he was doing, however. He didn´t have a death wish, that much was true, though he didn´t have anything to look forward if he lived. A life without Kagome was not what he had wished for, he had experienced for three long years and that had been enough. If he could avoid wanting and missing her by any means, he would at least try it.

Beads of sweat running down his brow, Inuyasha skidded to a stop near the bottom of the cliff. The lake where Sesshomaru had arranged the meeting was surrounded by tall, rocky mountains on the southern side of the lake which ended abruptly on their steeps sides like a granite wall enclosing the quiet waters. The other youkais had cornered him against the cliff, there was no other way out than to charge forward. It was time to use his Hijin Kesso. Buring the claws of his right hand on his left thigh, Inuyasha bolted at top speed against the uwabami´s side, successfully injuring the beast near its heart. The giant serpent writhed around in pain, its tail twitching in an awkward manner. Inuyasha tried to avoid it, jumping from side to side when the omukade´s legs came down in front him. The centipede was using its weight against him, the hanyo realized he was trapped when the snake´s tail lashed him on the back of the head and he was captured by tens of giant insect legs.

It all happened in slow motion as he replayed the events in his head, the omukade lifting him from the ground as it stood upright, using its thousand legs to move him up to its jaws and stabbing its poisonous fangs on his chest. The violent scream that escaped his lips as he felt the scalding heat spreading to the rest of his body must have alerted the agonizing snake of his defeat. When he opened his eyes, he was face to face to face with both youkais, their foul breaths mixing in an overwhelming putrid smelling cloud.

Turning his head to the side, the hanyo could see the last rays of sun straining between coal-black clouds. He closed his eyes and summoned the little remaining energy he had for one last attack. He spat on his claws and in one swift movement aimed for the omukade´s eye. He wasn´t sure whether his saliva would work against the giant centipede, he was only half human, he figured at least he could afflict half the damage of a regular human´s saliva. The omukade let go of his limp form while falling to the ground in agony. Inuyasha could hardly move, his body feeling hot and heavy from the poison, his senses still strong enough to detect the snake´s slow movements towards him. Wasting no time, Inuyasha dragged himself to the centipede´s open jaws and coated his talons on the venomous excretion from its fangs. The snake sluggish movements gave him time to react before he felt the yokai´s length wrapping around his body. Inuyasha looked for the injured chest and injected the omukade´s poison directly into the bloody carvings his own hands had made before. The uwabami tried hard to maintain its grip on Inuyasha´s body, the hanyo could hear the fast-beating heart of the snake starting to slow down at the same time as the deadly grip began to relax until he was loose enough to break free.

"This is the end," he said out loud, "I will recover from my wounds before the new moon. Your clans will have to abide by my father´s ruling"

Stumbling on wobbly legs, Inuyasha tried to move away from the convulsing shapes at the foot of the cliff. He advanced a few inches and fell on his hands and knees, he was willing his weakened body to move when his ears caught the sounds of falling rocks, his head whipping around to meet the snake´s eyes, a malicious grin spreading on its face.

"It isn´t over half-breed." The uwabami spat out. "Now we all die together; the mountains are collapsing on top of us. Our clans will demand revenge, a new war is coming, even if we are dead, there´s no way to avoid it"

The last words were barely audible as the thundering roar of the falling rocks approached them. Inuyasha hauled his body as much as he could to avoid the avalanche, he found a big boulder near him where he tried to find shelter, he could at least avoid the bigger rocks, with any luck.

That was the last thing he could recall. In his actual position, he couldn´t keep a tally of the damage received. It was becoming increasingly difficult just to keep breathing. He could feel his consciousness drifting away, swallowed by the black hole once again.

"Kagome, I´d like to see you again before the end.."

 ***Sankon Tesso:** Iron Reaver Soul Stealer

 ***Hijin Kesso:** Blades of Blood

I noticed that the links to this pages weren´t published in the previous chapters, just remove the spaces if you want to learn more about these youkais.

oomukade/

?s=UWABAMI

Here´s a brief description of the youkai Inuyasha faces so you can understand a little better what happened in this chapter in case you can´t follow the link.

OMUKADE: A giant centipede very vicious and agressive, just like Mistress Centipede from the first episode. The omukade´s weakness is human saliva.

UWABAMI: A giant shape shifting snake. They are believed to influence the elements, they are often blamed for floods or rock slides.


	30. Chapter 30- The light at the end of the

29- The light at the end of the tunnel

Well, here it is, the end is almost upon us. I decided to make this chapter in two parts because it was getting too long. I´m sorry if it has too much dialogue, but I felt that these two needed to talk. That´s one thing that always tick me off about anime, they don´t usually talk things through. So, I felt like making them say what needed to be said and I needed to tie the loose ends, that´s the main reason for the long ending. Also, I still don´t want to finish, I will miss this story so much, even when I´m working on others.

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, they were created by the very talented Rumiko Takahashi.

Immersed in the gloom of an endless night, Inuyasha's feverish mind kept conjuring Kagome by his side, her voice soothing him during the agonic hours. He could even feel her soft hand on his forehead, he nimble fingers brushing his cheeks and carefully stroking his bangs as she had done so many times when she was concerned about his health. He wanted to see her so badly he kept imagining her all through the last painful moments of his life.

"Kagome..." His sore throat even dared speak her name out loud.

"I think the fever is receding Kaede-baachan."

"Let´s see." The older miko touched the hanyo´s forehead and cheeks to confirm Kagome´s assessment. "You´re right. He´ll be waking up any moment now."

"Then you can go home now. You have been here most of the day, you must be exhausted."

"Aye, I´m a bit tired. I have to check on Humiko´s wife before I head home, her pregnancy has not been easy." The old lady was already at the bedroom door when she turned around. "Remember to give him the tea I have prepared when he wakes up, he´ll insist he doesn´t need medicine but it will help him regain his strength."

"Don´t worry, I´ll make him drink it." Kagome spoke to her back. She had been at the bedside, nursing Inuyasha since Sesshomaru found him under a pile of rocks, unconscious, burning up in fever and bleeding.

They had left her home early that morning, the Daiyokai leading the way and Kagome riding on Ah-Un´s back. It had taken a lot of convincing from Kagome´s part to get the Lord of the West on the quest for his younger brother. He had only come to see her at Inuyasha´s request and after the hanyo had agreed to meet with the quarreling yokais. Sesshomaru´s duty was only as a messenger, he had informed her, he owed nothing else to his little brother. Kagome had to vow to be at his command, as a healer, whenever his people needed her so that her brother in law would help her find Inuyasha. And after finding him and rescuing him, he had helped bring his brother home. Kagome felt that any promise she had made would never be enough to repay Sesshomaru for what he had done.

"Kagome..."

Inuyasha´s weak, raspy voice brought her back to reality.

"I´m right here." She said taking his hand. Very slowly his eyelids fluttered as he tried to open his eyes and focus on her face.

" Am I in hell?" Inuyasha asked still confused to wake up on their bed.

"Not yet, just wait till you feel better buddy."

He wanted to laugh but the effort just made him cough. He was relieved to see there was no more blood in his cough.

"It is you, really you." He said once the cough subsided. " I thought the fever made me delirious." He stopped to breathe again, he was feeling as if he had been stomped on over and over by a huge oni. "How did I get home? What happened?"

He was trying to sit up while Kagome pushed him back into the pillows.

"Don´t try to move please, your body was badly injured, you had several broken ribs, your left wrist and leg had to be put in a splint and your lungs were full of fluid, you were hardly breathing when we found you, not to mention the fever and poisoning on top of that."

The young miko´s eyes were beginning to flood with fresh tears that she refused to shed in front of Inuyasha. He was aware, however, the salty smell of tears clung to her clothes, it had been fainting until that moment when the odor hit his senses again.

"Wait here, don´t move." She told him, even when she was sure he wouldn´t be able to do much.

She returned from the kitchen with the tea Kaede had mentioned. Pouring it into a small saucer, she helped the hanyo drink small sips.

Inuyasha scrunched his face, the brew tasted awful, yet he didn´t dare refuse Kagome´s ministrations. His gaze went up from the saucer and was locked on a shiny object attached to Kagome´s finger.

"You are wearing the ring." He didn´t chance ask her why was she still wearing after all that had happened.

"Was it not for me? Are you planning to marry somebody else?"

Seeing that she was being sassy, Inuyasha decided to change the subject.

"How did you find me? How did you bring me home?"

Now that he had drunk some of the disgusting concoction, he felt his strength rekindle a little bit, enough to find out how he had ended up here.

"It was Sesshomaru. He helped me find you and bring you back home."

"He did?" Inuyasha was having a hard time accepting that fact. "He just came out of nowhere and offered to help you?"

"It wasn´t exactly like that," Kagome answered heaving a tired sigh, "he came to deliver your message. By the way, you don´t break up with somebody like that, you come and tell them to their face, you jackass."

Inuyasha let out a sad sigh. He knew Kagome wouldn´t be happy about his decision, yet he didn´t expect to find her devastated and angry.

"I didn´t plan it, ok? It was the best I could think of at the moment. And I knew if I had to face you I wouldn´t be strong enough to do it."

Kagome pierced him with her eyes while he spoke.

"His exact words were:" she cut in, "You are released from the vows you made to my ototo. You may remain living in this dwelling, if you wish, he will no longer try to find you."

The tears she had been fighting to contain broke loose and streamed down her cheeks. Her voice sounded hostile when she spoke.

"It hurt more than I had ever imagined."

"You are bitter, I can see that." Inuyasha tried hard not to reach for her and hold her in spite of the weakness and physical pain he was still enduring. "It is the for the best, I´m too dangerous. I hurt you and Jinenji because I can´t control my yokai half."

"Jinenji is fine. He was a little shaken and he´s really scared of you now but he´s way stronger than you give him credit for, trust me. And you didn´t hurt me either." She said a little too proudly while she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin in a defiant pose.

"Kagome, I heard you and Sango in the woods, after you sat me. She said I tried to strangle you. I don´t ever want to cause you any pain, I swore to protect you, kuzo."

"You did not try to strangle me, you moron. They were love bites, the marks Sango saw in my neck, there´s hardly any left." She moved her sweater to the side to let him see for himself. "You were horny, in the woods, in your youkai form."

Suddenly he remembered, after coming to in the woods he had smelt their arousal, both his and hers. Now it made sense.

"Oh! That´s what happened?"

"See? I told you, you would never hurt me, at least physically. There was no need for this stupid break-up."

"Ok," Inuyasha paused for a moment. "I got that wrong. But there´s other stuff."

"What?" She said baring her teeth in an almost perfect imitation of his snarling. "The picture? The condoms?"

"Well, I don´t really know the name of those things, but probably it´s that."

"I´m sorry, ok?" All the anger left her voice as Kagome spoke from her heart, bearing her soul to him for the first time since she crossed the well. "I apologize. I should have told you about that night but I forgot about everything else after we were reunited."

Straightening her back while trying to regain her composure, Kagome looked away from him before starting her retelling of the events.

"I was miserable. As time passed and the well wouldn´t open, I tried to go on with my life for my friends, for my family, but never for myself. I did everything that was expected of me, but nothing made me happy. That night, the night of the picture, we were supposed to celebrate our graduation. Hojo-kun was my date." She stopped for a moment when she thought she heard Inuyasha growl. "My friend Yuka gave me the condoms, she said I should finally become a woman, have some fun."

The growling become louder, it was unmistakable now. Kagome looked him straight in the eyes.

"I didn´t do it!" She almost screamed. " I couldn´t even kiss him, for kami´s sake." She stopped to let out a sigh. "He was very respectful, asking me to be his girlfriend and then gracefully accepting my rejection. After that night, I just couldn´t neglect my feelings anymore, I wanted to see you. I grabbed the picture and the condoms because they were in a purse my mom had lent me, I didn´t bring them because they were important."

When she stopped talking the room was silent, only the crickets could be heard outside welcoming the night.

She now knew this conversation was long overdue. She would have prevented a lot of suffering had she spoken with Inuyasha sooner.

 _"_ _Well, now is the time. You have to let everything out in the open."_ She told herself for encouragement.

The night was falling upon them and it seemed to Kagome that it would be quite a long one.


	31. Chapter 31- 30- Glowing

30- Glowing

This is it, finally. The last chapter of this story. I want to thank you so much for bearing with me all along the way, it´s been such a joy. Also, if you want to check another story I´m working on, it´s called "Eros and Tanathos" s/12829339/1/Eros-and-Thanatos. I know, the title and the summary suck, but I´d like to know what you think about it. I was waiting to have "Dichotomy" finished before I started publishing, I have a few chapters typed, hopefully, I can focus entirely on it. Also, I will write an epilogue for this story, I can´t leave Inukag without a proper wedding night, can I?

Disclaimer: I don´t own any of the characters, as you probably suspected.

Kagome wrapped a blanket around her body as the chilly air of the night rose goosebumps on her flesh. She was feeling utterly tired, the emotional strain had been too much for just one day. All she wanted to do was to lay down next to her hanyo and forget about their problems.

Kaede´s advice came to her mind then, they needed to clear the air. To avoid new problems in the future it was imperative that she and Inuyasha talked.

"Look Kagome," the hanyo had recovered some of his strength by then, enough to sit on the bed, his back supported by the wall. "I still think it´s better to leave you under Sesshomaru´s protection." The words burst the bubble of Kagome´s musings. "I had time to do a lot of thinking while I expected for my life to end." Inuyasha´s eyes were looking down focusing on what he had to say while avoiding Kagome´s soulful expression. "I´ve heard people saying that when you love somebody, you change. You become a better person. Even Miroku has become a great father and a good husband. And I didn´t, I just keep being me. You deserve so much more."

The girl wiped a lonely tear with the back of her hand. The mention of the _L word_ was not lost on her, but what good did it make when he wanted to leave her? Kagome sighed loudly, she was tired of crying, it never did any good anyway, so why waste the energy?

"You know, you have changed too, Inuyasha. When we first met I thought we were too different. But as time passed and we got to know each other better, my opinion of you changed, then I believed we were the perfect dichotomy."

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at her. "Wench, you know I hate when you use fancy words." He wasn´t upset because of that, he just wanted to understand what she meant.

"It means that we are like the opposite of each other, but we define each other by our differences, like Ying and Yang, do you know what that is?"

"Keh, I´m no ignorant!"

Kagome smiled. A weak sign of amusement that lightened her features and reflected into Inuyasha´s. The hanyo returned her smile and gingerly took her hand with his.

"You see? We´re too different. You are way too smart to remain with someone like me for too long."

"You are right this time, you are an idiot. I said I believed that back then. Now I´m positive we are just the same, you and me. You see, I used to think I was weak and you were strong and I needed you to protect me. Now I know that´s not true."

"You have become very strong on your own, I only protect you because you are precious to me."

"See? That´s another difference. I used to think I was kind and you were rude. Now I know it´s just a front, you are very sensitive underneath all that rough exterior." Kagome smiled again before continuing. "We are both honorable people and we hate injustice. You are smart too, and capable, look at the house you built for us."

"Keh, you have been calling me stupid since I opened my eyes."

"That´s because sometimes you are clueless when it comes to emotions. You hadn´t noticed I´ve been in love with you for such a long time."

Inuyasha´s eyes seemed to grow as big as an owl´s. He had hoped that Kagome would someday return his feelings since she had always shown openly that she cared for him. Never in his wildest dreams, had he expected her to say out loud that she loved him. Suddenly, talking became a difficult task while he drowned himself in a sea of emotions.

Kagome stole a glance at him. She felt her face burning and knew she was as red as a beet, still, she refused to back down now that she had gathered the courage to tell how she felt.

Inuyasha could hear the sound of Kagome´s galloping heartbeat and his own heart rivaling with hers.

"Kagome... I... I love you too..." He looked down at their joined hands before finally daring to meet her eyes again. "I do, really, but still... I want more." He spoke softly, hesitating for a moment.

"More?" Whatever more he could possibly want? She was baring her soul to him and it wasn´t enough? Kagome was astounded.

"I want a family like Miroku and Sango have. I want a home, a wife, and children too. I know it´s too much to ask, but I´ve become greedy. I want it all."

The tears that Kagome had promised again and again not to cry were threatening to spill from her eyes once more.

"And you think I don´t want any of that?"

Kagome threw herself on top of him, releasing her hand from his and crushing him in an impossibly strong hug for a woman her size.

"You´re crying again, woman. I hate it when you cry." Inuyasha could still manage to speak while his body protested the sudden impact of her small figure on top of his.

"Shhh, shut up and let me cry, these are happy tears."

"So, what does it mean? Are you happy?"

"I am elated. I want all of that too, you silly." she suddenly noticed the painful expression on his face. "Sorry, I forgot you are still recovering from your wounds."

Kagome went back to sitting next to him, a huge smile gracing her features now.

"Since you can´t seem to understand what is happening, I´m taking over from now on." Tears were streaming down her cheeks and Kagome didn´t mind, for once.  
"The wedding is still on, if you aren´t feeling well tomorrow, then the next day. You will apologize to Jinenji and help build him a new home. And you will thank your brother."

"Sesshomaru? Really?" Inuyasha rolled his eyes in disgust.

"Yes, you have to agree with all I say, it´s your punishment, take it like a man."

"Fine!" He pretended to be mad, but in fact, he didn´t mind. If she still wanted to be with him, he would go to hell and back to make this woman happy.

"You owe your life to your brother and he said it was high time you took an interest in your father´s legacy." Kagome shook his hand to keep his attention on her. "There´s more. Not only will you thank your brother, you will sit with him at the peace conference between the omukade and the uwabami leaders."

"I thought they had died. Weren´t they buried in the landslide?"

"They were, but after Sesshomaru dig them out of the rubble and I helped purify the poison from their bodies, they were happy to agree to a new peace treaty with your family."

"How is it possible that neither of us died?" Inuyasha was puzzled to hear that.

"Well, it was all thanks to the omukade´s poison. It is not lethal, as we all had assumed, it only makes your heart rate extremely low. Thanks to that fact you didn´t bleed out while you were in your human form." Kagome was grinding her teeth by now. "Just thinking about it makes me so mad at you, risking your life like that. From now on, your life is mine, you have no right to jeopardize your well being, understood?"

Inuyasha could only nod his answer. Kagome was really frightening when she got mad, he wouldn´t risk getting her in a foul mood now that they had just recovered from a breakup.

"I haven´t finished yet. You will also practice meditation with me and Miroku every day."

"Do I have to?" Meditation didn´t sound like fun at all, Inuyasha had always preferred to train his muscles rather than his spirit. He risked a sideways glance to Kagome´s frowning face and decided meditation wasn´t so bad.

"On second thought, it´s said that meditation can help you with your anger issues." He was almost afraid to utter the words as he saw Kagome was changing colors almost immediately.

The young miko just closed her eyes and breathed deeply. The numerous occasions she had sat Inuyasha in a fit of rage came to her mind. Right now, she was having a hard time keeping her anger in check. If she was honest with herself, she could use some angry management therapy and this could be it.

"Of course! We can both benefit from it!" She said releasing her breath slowly "We can start doing it once a day until you learn to control your youkai self. After we accomplish that, you might be able to turn full youkai at will. And if you are, maybe we can try again what we were doing in the forest."

"Really?" Inuyasha couldn´t prevent his face from showing the glee he was feeling now that their banter became more relaxed. "Look who´s being horny now!"

They both laughed now that the tension was finally melting from their shoulders.

"There is one last thing," Kagome said when the laughter subsided " I can´t force you to do it so I am asking you to. I want you to trust me." She had reached for his hand again and hold it to her face, leaning her cheek on top of it. "I expect us to be happy, but I know there will be difficulties on our way. I want you to talk to me, even if we argue, don´t keep anything from me, please."

"I won´t, I promise. Never again."

"See? It wasn´t that hard. Now let me check on the stew. I spent all day nursing you, I´m starving and you are probably too."

In the forest, life continued its course in the darkness, quieting almost all activities until the sunlight shone again. Inside the lonely cabin, the dim light of the lanterns was overshadowed by the glow radiating from the couple. Sweet nothings were spoken into each other ears in periods between sleep and wakefulness, their bodies intertwined in spite of pain and discomfort. From this day on, the distance between their hearts was just a blurred line.

THE END


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